I am so utterly disgusted, I could bite real nails. I just spent 3 1/2 hours finding and escaping from a housing nightmare. Never mind the 15 minutes I spent discovering that most everything advertised about it was *koff, koff* wrong.
The 1.36 acres was barely .5, the apparently open lot (from the pictures) was covered by junk trees, etc. OK, sure the agents (and I won't name names) want to put the best spin on things, but I consider them lower than smiley used car salesmen...
(Disclaimer: If you are an honorable real estate agent, I honor you for being in the honorable minority. The rest of you agents can go eat hot coals somewhere).
So I guess I will stay here for another 30 years and fix up the place. Or do what my Dad did the last 2 times and buy a property then hire a general contractor to put a house on it. And oh how I wish I had Dad here to ask about THAT process now. I waited 5 years too long...
You can look at the ground and have a good idea what you are getting. Lot owners know their property to the sq inch. And you can look at floorplans and previously-built houses like that and get a good idea what you are getting from a builder. They know the house to the sq inch. But when you talk to a real estate agent selling a home for an owner, you DON'T have the slightest idea what you are getting. To them, feet are yards and yards are miles...
I've known more honest carnival barkers...
So, if you will excuse me, I have a large bottle of average Zinfandel to drain today...
Disgusted Mark...
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Veterans Day
Today, we honor the dead, the physically injured, those who struggle with mental injuries, and all those who served. But I am not here to honor all. In all history, there have been some fighters who fought for good things. I honor them.
But there have been many more who fought for bad things. I do not honor them. Most of the bad warriors were just out for gold, religion, territory. History is replete with their kind and they deserve no honor.
The fewer are the ones who protect. Those who defend their people from attack, who give their lives so the farmers and wives and children, and the other husbands can live. And yes, for those women who fought and died too.
I honor today those who fought to DEFEND their people.
Not all soldiers and warriors deserve respect. Ghengis Khan and his armies did not fight for anything I consider "good". The same for other invaders. Most of the time, any attacking army is in the wrong, and I do not honor them.
I honor every peasant who raised a pitchfork in every desperate attempt to save his family from marauders. I honor every city or farm person who slipped into the night to disrupt invaders. I honor every member of organized armed units that are dedicated to just fightin others to leave the general population in peace.
Today, I raise my civilian hand in honor and respect for the defenders, the veterans of defending our people, all people everywhere.
I wish I could say it better than just...
Thank You!
But there have been many more who fought for bad things. I do not honor them. Most of the bad warriors were just out for gold, religion, territory. History is replete with their kind and they deserve no honor.
The fewer are the ones who protect. Those who defend their people from attack, who give their lives so the farmers and wives and children, and the other husbands can live. And yes, for those women who fought and died too.
I honor today those who fought to DEFEND their people.
Not all soldiers and warriors deserve respect. Ghengis Khan and his armies did not fight for anything I consider "good". The same for other invaders. Most of the time, any attacking army is in the wrong, and I do not honor them.
I honor every peasant who raised a pitchfork in every desperate attempt to save his family from marauders. I honor every city or farm person who slipped into the night to disrupt invaders. I honor every member of organized armed units that are dedicated to just fightin others to leave the general population in peace.
Today, I raise my civilian hand in honor and respect for the defenders, the veterans of defending our people, all people everywhere.
I wish I could say it better than just...
Thank You!
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
The Last Edging Circle, 2
Well, you may recall that I had a ridge leveled in my back yard, the soil moved to raise a part of the front yard and that I was creating some areas bordered with edging so I could plant stuff. And that I had become royally tired of digging trenches for the edging in the rocky soil. And because there were some large tree roots I did not want to cut which meant cutting the edging to fit on top of the roots.
So I left the last one half done for a week and did other stuff. Well, I am happy to report that I finished it today. No more digging in that soil...
There are 3 edged areas.
The far one has perennial wildflowers mixed in with enough compost to barely cover. I have no idea what will happen there. The package of seeds did not specify which plants were, and they grow so slowly that I won't recognize any until they bloom, and there were already some small weeds growing there. I might end up nurturing 400 sq ft of weeds until next Summer when I see nothing blooming when I have to replant more carefully.
The middle smaller area is for Lychimartra Firecracker, a lovely bronze foliage plant about 24" high with lots of small yellow flowers. But it is a bit invasive and needs to be contained by itself. It has its own 200 sq ft circle so that I can mow around it!
The nearest area, also 400 sq ft will be a combination of daffodils, tulips, and hyacinths for Spring color; with transplants of purple coneflowers, black-eyed-susans, and goldenrod for Summer and Fall color. Plus I plan to add a few dwarf butterfly bushes. I may get a package of seeds of plants that attract butterflies and bees to scatter among the plants next Spring.
This last area will take some work planting. Tulips and Hyacinths don't last long here because of the voles, so I have to make cages to plant them in. The daffodils are fine without cages, being toxic. But the bulbs haven't been delivered yet, and the transplants still have green leaves so I can't move them yet.
Which means I can start on the new border of the older flowerbed (up against the fence to the left of the above picture). I originally planted the border with alternating 12" sections of yellow then purple crocuses. And 4" gaps between sections for annual Summer flowers. The voles ate most of the crocus bulbs in just a few years, so this time, I am planting them in cages. I'll still leave a 4" gap between the cages because it is nice to have Summer flowers there too and change them each year (yellow marigolds one year, dusty miller the next, orange zinnias after that, etc).
At least I don't have to install more edging there. It's already in place! And the soil there is soft and the border is the width of my spade. "Piece of cake". Right? Yeah, right...
Fortunately, the weather is forecast to stay nice into mid-November, so I may get away with all this before the first hard freeze hits. But I had better get working of those cages. Two sizes of cages actually. 8"L x 6"W x 4"H for the crocus bulb border (so I need about 50 of those). I haven't decided on the size of the cages for the tulip and hyacinth bulbs yet. I need to sit down and diagram cages what use a 3' wide roll of wire mesh efficiently.
But I have the crocus bulbs now, so they come first. The tulip cages can wait a few days... But they will look basically like this...
12-18" square, 6" high. It only needs making a wood form to bend the wire mesh over. Not that that takes no time, but it beats buying cages at $30 each!
So I left the last one half done for a week and did other stuff. Well, I am happy to report that I finished it today. No more digging in that soil...
There are 3 edged areas.
The middle smaller area is for Lychimartra Firecracker, a lovely bronze foliage plant about 24" high with lots of small yellow flowers. But it is a bit invasive and needs to be contained by itself. It has its own 200 sq ft circle so that I can mow around it!
The nearest area, also 400 sq ft will be a combination of daffodils, tulips, and hyacinths for Spring color; with transplants of purple coneflowers, black-eyed-susans, and goldenrod for Summer and Fall color. Plus I plan to add a few dwarf butterfly bushes. I may get a package of seeds of plants that attract butterflies and bees to scatter among the plants next Spring.
This last area will take some work planting. Tulips and Hyacinths don't last long here because of the voles, so I have to make cages to plant them in. The daffodils are fine without cages, being toxic. But the bulbs haven't been delivered yet, and the transplants still have green leaves so I can't move them yet.
Which means I can start on the new border of the older flowerbed (up against the fence to the left of the above picture). I originally planted the border with alternating 12" sections of yellow then purple crocuses. And 4" gaps between sections for annual Summer flowers. The voles ate most of the crocus bulbs in just a few years, so this time, I am planting them in cages. I'll still leave a 4" gap between the cages because it is nice to have Summer flowers there too and change them each year (yellow marigolds one year, dusty miller the next, orange zinnias after that, etc).
At least I don't have to install more edging there. It's already in place! And the soil there is soft and the border is the width of my spade. "Piece of cake". Right? Yeah, right...
Fortunately, the weather is forecast to stay nice into mid-November, so I may get away with all this before the first hard freeze hits. But I had better get working of those cages. Two sizes of cages actually. 8"L x 6"W x 4"H for the crocus bulb border (so I need about 50 of those). I haven't decided on the size of the cages for the tulip and hyacinth bulbs yet. I need to sit down and diagram cages what use a 3' wide roll of wire mesh efficiently.
But I have the crocus bulbs now, so they come first. The tulip cages can wait a few days... But they will look basically like this...
12-18" square, 6" high. It only needs making a wood form to bend the wire mesh over. Not that that takes no time, but it beats buying cages at $30 each!
Monday, November 2, 2015
A Surprise Letter
I subscribe to The Washington Post newspaper. Yeah, the print edition. It also happens to be my local newspaper (living near a nation's capital can have odd twists). But its easier to turn paper pages while I eat my lunch than mess up my laptop. And I recycle/compost anyway, so little is wasted. But I am also always about a month behind, so reading the political, business, and sports news can be hilarious! I read it mostly for the editorials.
So when I received a letter from The Washington Post, I expected some notice that my subscription was unpaid due to an expired card. Nope. It was good news.
The Washington Post has run a humor contest called 'The Style Invitational' each Sunday for 1,150 weeks. The weekly contests always some some odd theme or another. Write a limerick one week, caption a silly drawing the next, combine 2 Kentucky Derby racing horse names and come up with a funny name for the offspring, create a motto for a politician, etc.
I've sent in entries a few times, but because I'm behind on the reading, the deadlines are usually past. But I always read the winning entries because I admire the cleverness. There are usually a top 4 of winners and a dozen or so Honorable Mentions. Winners are referred to as "Losers" (it IS a humor column, the top 4 get prizes (like T-shirts saying "'Im a LOSER", cheap plastic coin banks shaped as outhouses, fake Dracula teeth, etc).
First time winners get one of those cheap pine tree car air fresheners, and even that is a joke. The air freshener is a "fir stink" (first ink).
I got my "fir stink" in the envelope! Hurray, I'm now a recognized LOSER!
The person who manages the contest (The Empress) doesn't have to give out very many "fir-stinks". The weekly winners ("losers") are usually pretty much the same group of very talented humourists. A new loser (also called a "first offender") is rare. Hurray, I'm RARE! And a "First Offender"!
For the record, the Week 1,142nd contest was to combine any 2 names into a Twitter handle and write a tweet by the hybrid person. Most just used real people names. I combined Secretariat (Kentucky Derby race horse winner) with Hillary Clinton for "@SecretariatHRClinton", and the tweet was "So I'm supposed to just keep running to the left?"
I'll leave everyone to figure that out themselves, but will explain if asked...
The winning entry was "@OrangeJulius: Could be well mov'd. My friends in the House are sticking knives into me." That shows the difference between a winning entry and an Honorable Mention! It succeeds on multiple levels. I was, as my Aussie friends would say "gobsmacked". No wonder some of these weekly participants win frequently!
But I think I may try entering the contest more often. There are, apparently, anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand participants each week (some contests are trickier to get a grip on than others).
I am outrageously delighted with my "First Ink" and want another shot of INK!
So when I received a letter from The Washington Post, I expected some notice that my subscription was unpaid due to an expired card. Nope. It was good news.
The Washington Post has run a humor contest called 'The Style Invitational' each Sunday for 1,150 weeks. The weekly contests always some some odd theme or another. Write a limerick one week, caption a silly drawing the next, combine 2 Kentucky Derby racing horse names and come up with a funny name for the offspring, create a motto for a politician, etc.
I've sent in entries a few times, but because I'm behind on the reading, the deadlines are usually past. But I always read the winning entries because I admire the cleverness. There are usually a top 4 of winners and a dozen or so Honorable Mentions. Winners are referred to as "Losers" (it IS a humor column, the top 4 get prizes (like T-shirts saying "'Im a LOSER", cheap plastic coin banks shaped as outhouses, fake Dracula teeth, etc).
First time winners get one of those cheap pine tree car air fresheners, and even that is a joke. The air freshener is a "fir stink" (first ink).
The person who manages the contest (The Empress) doesn't have to give out very many "fir-stinks". The weekly winners ("losers") are usually pretty much the same group of very talented humourists. A new loser (also called a "first offender") is rare. Hurray, I'm RARE! And a "First Offender"!
For the record, the Week 1,142nd contest was to combine any 2 names into a Twitter handle and write a tweet by the hybrid person. Most just used real people names. I combined Secretariat (Kentucky Derby race horse winner) with Hillary Clinton for "@SecretariatHRClinton", and the tweet was "So I'm supposed to just keep running to the left?"
I'll leave everyone to figure that out themselves, but will explain if asked...
The winning entry was "@OrangeJulius: Could be well mov'd. My friends in the House are sticking knives into me." That shows the difference between a winning entry and an Honorable Mention! It succeeds on multiple levels. I was, as my Aussie friends would say "gobsmacked". No wonder some of these weekly participants win frequently!
But I think I may try entering the contest more often. There are, apparently, anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand participants each week (some contests are trickier to get a grip on than others).
I am outrageously delighted with my "First Ink" and want another shot of INK!
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
Presidential Candidates, 2
Angel AbbyGrace asked "Are you remembering the "Russian Reset" with Hill?"
Well, I did have to google "Russian Reset" and it WAS kind of funny. Something about a mistranslated American word into Russian on a symbolic fake "reset button gadget" (and noting it had been signed off on as accurate by the Russian embassy).
But I wasn't arguing politics. I was thinking about the current presidential candidates and who could stand up among world leaders facing someone like Putin.
There are darn few of the current crop that could. It's awful! Marco Rubio comes across like the intern designated to bring the serious leaders their coffee. Jeb! is a wimp. Trump would be out-bullied by Putin. Walker and Kasich would be dismissed as bullying teacher unions (though at least Putin would like THAT!
And I'm not being mean to just Republicans. Politically, I'm more aligned with Bernie Sanders; I'd love to talk to him all day. But he is basically a mayor of a small place. He has no executive or international experience. O'Malley was a great Governor of a minor State (and for all I know,he could be a very good Chief Executive in calm prosperous times).
It is just that I can't find anyone but Hillary Clinton who could look eye to eye with someone like Putin and not flinch. She's hard as nails. And I don't mean fingernails...
To prove the point that I am politically unbiased regarding "strength" of presidents, who would I take today from the past?
Teddy! (Roosevelt, not Kennedy), Franklin Roosevelt, Truman, Reagan... Yeah, some democrats and some republicans. Like I said, I'm not arguing politics here (yet).
So if I wanted someone from the current crop of people desiring to become President, who would I want? Well, aside from ME of course... I would want Hillary Clinton. She just has the personality to handle the job. Seriously, you don't WANT some inexperienced and stupid "hey, I might actually get lucky and win" type as President here.
I remember seeing some political cartoon showing some guy being sworn into office and then in the 2nd panel he says to his political advisors, "OK, so what do I do NOW?". THAT'S SCARY, and that's what I'm afraid most of the candidates WOULD do.
There are too many people who desperately WANT that job, but too few who really seem to have any idea what to DO with it.
Clinton's politics don't align with mine perfectly. And yes, she is a politician and bit of a slippery one at that. But at the top job, experience and talent matter. Few leaders are "nice" or "clean".
At the risk of echoing Donald ("I went Wharton, so I'm smart") Trump, I have to say I have a degree in Political Science. I study this stuff to this day. We are far past the times when we elected successful Generals because they knew how to manage a whole army. World affairs are bigger than armies now.
What a US President needs is the skill to manage international chaos. The only candidate I see who could do that is Hillary Clinton.
Well, I did have to google "Russian Reset" and it WAS kind of funny. Something about a mistranslated American word into Russian on a symbolic fake "reset button gadget" (and noting it had been signed off on as accurate by the Russian embassy).
But I wasn't arguing politics. I was thinking about the current presidential candidates and who could stand up among world leaders facing someone like Putin.
There are darn few of the current crop that could. It's awful! Marco Rubio comes across like the intern designated to bring the serious leaders their coffee. Jeb! is a wimp. Trump would be out-bullied by Putin. Walker and Kasich would be dismissed as bullying teacher unions (though at least Putin would like THAT!
And I'm not being mean to just Republicans. Politically, I'm more aligned with Bernie Sanders; I'd love to talk to him all day. But he is basically a mayor of a small place. He has no executive or international experience. O'Malley was a great Governor of a minor State (and for all I know,he could be a very good Chief Executive in calm prosperous times).
It is just that I can't find anyone but Hillary Clinton who could look eye to eye with someone like Putin and not flinch. She's hard as nails. And I don't mean fingernails...
To prove the point that I am politically unbiased regarding "strength" of presidents, who would I take today from the past?
Teddy! (Roosevelt, not Kennedy), Franklin Roosevelt, Truman, Reagan... Yeah, some democrats and some republicans. Like I said, I'm not arguing politics here (yet).
So if I wanted someone from the current crop of people desiring to become President, who would I want? Well, aside from ME of course... I would want Hillary Clinton. She just has the personality to handle the job. Seriously, you don't WANT some inexperienced and stupid "hey, I might actually get lucky and win" type as President here.
I remember seeing some political cartoon showing some guy being sworn into office and then in the 2nd panel he says to his political advisors, "OK, so what do I do NOW?". THAT'S SCARY, and that's what I'm afraid most of the candidates WOULD do.
There are too many people who desperately WANT that job, but too few who really seem to have any idea what to DO with it.
Clinton's politics don't align with mine perfectly. And yes, she is a politician and bit of a slippery one at that. But at the top job, experience and talent matter. Few leaders are "nice" or "clean".
At the risk of echoing Donald ("I went Wharton, so I'm smart") Trump, I have to say I have a degree in Political Science. I study this stuff to this day. We are far past the times when we elected successful Generals because they knew how to manage a whole army. World affairs are bigger than armies now.
What a US President needs is the skill to manage international chaos. The only candidate I see who could do that is Hillary Clinton.
Presidential Candidates
The Republicans...
Donald Trump - Middle school bully, with brains to match.
Ben Carson - The quiet crazy guy who thinks everyone is either a Nazi or a slaveowner. I think maybe we are all both. In his mind..
Ted Cruz - I could be both of those guys above, really. Let me try harder...
Marco Rubio - Sure I look like I'm 20, but I can talk that way too. Oh wait, is that the prob?
Jeb! - Hey, never mind if I don't mention the last name, I'm The Next One. You all know it, right? Unless you don't want me to mention I'm a Bush.. Then I'm not. Dubya says not too, so...
The Democrats...
Hillary! - I'm the ONE right? I mean we all agreed on that after the last go-around. The Black GUY first and THEN its my turn... Um, OUR turn, Right? It's my turn now? And you get Bill back for a 3rd and 4th turn... He's not dead yet.
Bernie Sanders - Look you want an angry guy who is usually right (well leftist if ya know what I mean), you have ME! Never mind that I probably couldn't manage a candy store, I'm always right. (er, left) And I yell a lot, so that proves I care.
Martin O'Malley - I talk nice, I'm from Maryland, I'm classical liberal, I'm not Spiro Agnew. What more do you want?
******************
What we are missing here is the person who can meet with Putin and say "I'll punch ya into the middle of next week" convincingly. And with a plan for that...
Putin would laugh at Trump, remind Jeb! that his whole family are wimps, ask Rubio if he shaves yet, and tell Sanders that he isn't the socialist he imagines he is.
But he wouldn't know what to say to Hillary Rodham Clinton... She's unflappable, unstoppable, and unbreakable...
Donald Trump - Middle school bully, with brains to match.
Ben Carson - The quiet crazy guy who thinks everyone is either a Nazi or a slaveowner. I think maybe we are all both. In his mind..
Ted Cruz - I could be both of those guys above, really. Let me try harder...
Marco Rubio - Sure I look like I'm 20, but I can talk that way too. Oh wait, is that the prob?
Jeb! - Hey, never mind if I don't mention the last name, I'm The Next One. You all know it, right? Unless you don't want me to mention I'm a Bush.. Then I'm not. Dubya says not too, so...
The Democrats...
Hillary! - I'm the ONE right? I mean we all agreed on that after the last go-around. The Black GUY first and THEN its my turn... Um, OUR turn, Right? It's my turn now? And you get Bill back for a 3rd and 4th turn... He's not dead yet.
Bernie Sanders - Look you want an angry guy who is usually right (well leftist if ya know what I mean), you have ME! Never mind that I probably couldn't manage a candy store, I'm always right. (er, left) And I yell a lot, so that proves I care.
Martin O'Malley - I talk nice, I'm from Maryland, I'm classical liberal, I'm not Spiro Agnew. What more do you want?
******************
What we are missing here is the person who can meet with Putin and say "I'll punch ya into the middle of next week" convincingly. And with a plan for that...
Putin would laugh at Trump, remind Jeb! that his whole family are wimps, ask Rubio if he shaves yet, and tell Sanders that he isn't the socialist he imagines he is.
But he wouldn't know what to say to Hillary Rodham Clinton... She's unflappable, unstoppable, and unbreakable...
Monday, October 26, 2015
The Last Edging Circle
It nearly done. I did the last digging yesterday. Almost... There are 3 tree roots crossing the edging trench. I don't want to chop them out; the tree needs them. They ARE slightly below-ground though. I think I will cut the bottoms of the edging to fit over top of the roots. But I sure need to have the whole rest of the edging perfectly fitted around the trench before doing any cutting-to-fit.
Seriously, it has to be about as precise as wood-working.
So I went round and round the circle trench to get it as uniformly deep as possible (but not too deep either, so I can lay in this last area of edging. The edging is heavy (but cuttable) plastic, and I'll get it to all fit in tomorrow.
But I thought this would take 2 weeks and it has been 6 weeks. *sigh* Other demands get in the way. Laundry, grocery-shopping, cooking, etc...
At least I'm close to done! But that's not "quite" done. The center areas is edged, but that is for transplanted Lychimatria Firecracker to. Lovely plant; very invasive though. So I have the circle for it that I can mow around all year and keep it from spreading.
The last area is for semi-shady wildflowers, spring bulbs, and some dwarf azaleas. I have no idea how that will work out, but I don't have to worry about THAT until next Spring.
Meanwhile, the older flowerbed along the fence has been ignored for months. I needs work. Mostly, it needs areas that have been taken over by grass killed. Fortunately, it won't take more than a day (he said optimistically) to pull the grass tops off and cover the areas with black plastic for the Winter. I hope they will die. And least they will be weakened. And that whole area needs to be rebuilt next year.
There is too much space there with "just a few of this and a couple of that" left in spots after years of gradual die-backs. Even perennials don't live forever.
I need to collect the surviving ones from various spots together (9 same plants together look better than 3 spots of 3 plants). Some long-lived perennials (like purple coneflowers and black-eyed-susans) tend to self-seed to places the prefer, and some plants get exposed to more sunlight than they like when other plants die back and need better conditions.
The good news is that I have 15 daylilies saved in pots from the ridge that was removed, I have 30 azalea cuttings that have been rooting for 2 months, the dwarf butterfly bush and the dwarf knock-out rose seem healthy enough for cuttings (I have a well-lit plant light stand), and I have LOTS of viable seeds of marigolds, zinnias, salvias, forget-me-nots, butterfly weed, herbs etc.
I am slowly changing from multi-yearly troublesome perennials, that bloom briefly, to replaceable annuals that bloom all year long. The nice thing about annuals is that you can turn the soil early each Spring before planting and expose the germinating weed seeds to be killed with a shallow hoeing.
Some perennials solve all the problems by growing high and thick so that no weeds thrive. That's why I'm trying to give the Lychmastria their own space. There are 2 areas of plants where no weeds grow. The Lychimastria and the Stokesia (Stokes Asters). I'll divide the Stokesia (guidance says in Spring, which seems odd, but OK). To set up another 6x6' area.
Seriously, it has to be about as precise as wood-working.
So I went round and round the circle trench to get it as uniformly deep as possible (but not too deep either, so I can lay in this last area of edging. The edging is heavy (but cuttable) plastic, and I'll get it to all fit in tomorrow.
But I thought this would take 2 weeks and it has been 6 weeks. *sigh* Other demands get in the way. Laundry, grocery-shopping, cooking, etc...
At least I'm close to done! But that's not "quite" done. The center areas is edged, but that is for transplanted Lychimatria Firecracker to. Lovely plant; very invasive though. So I have the circle for it that I can mow around all year and keep it from spreading.
The last area is for semi-shady wildflowers, spring bulbs, and some dwarf azaleas. I have no idea how that will work out, but I don't have to worry about THAT until next Spring.
Meanwhile, the older flowerbed along the fence has been ignored for months. I needs work. Mostly, it needs areas that have been taken over by grass killed. Fortunately, it won't take more than a day (he said optimistically) to pull the grass tops off and cover the areas with black plastic for the Winter. I hope they will die. And least they will be weakened. And that whole area needs to be rebuilt next year.
There is too much space there with "just a few of this and a couple of that" left in spots after years of gradual die-backs. Even perennials don't live forever.
I need to collect the surviving ones from various spots together (9 same plants together look better than 3 spots of 3 plants). Some long-lived perennials (like purple coneflowers and black-eyed-susans) tend to self-seed to places the prefer, and some plants get exposed to more sunlight than they like when other plants die back and need better conditions.
The good news is that I have 15 daylilies saved in pots from the ridge that was removed, I have 30 azalea cuttings that have been rooting for 2 months, the dwarf butterfly bush and the dwarf knock-out rose seem healthy enough for cuttings (I have a well-lit plant light stand), and I have LOTS of viable seeds of marigolds, zinnias, salvias, forget-me-nots, butterfly weed, herbs etc.
I am slowly changing from multi-yearly troublesome perennials, that bloom briefly, to replaceable annuals that bloom all year long. The nice thing about annuals is that you can turn the soil early each Spring before planting and expose the germinating weed seeds to be killed with a shallow hoeing.
Some perennials solve all the problems by growing high and thick so that no weeds thrive. That's why I'm trying to give the Lychmastria their own space. There are 2 areas of plants where no weeds grow. The Lychimastria and the Stokesia (Stokes Asters). I'll divide the Stokesia (guidance says in Spring, which seems odd, but OK). To set up another 6x6' area.
Saturday, October 24, 2015
Projects
Ever feel you are mentally done doing yard projects for the year? But they're not finished? I'm tired, but there is more to do. I did finally get one done. The far edged area intended for wildflowers...
I needed to loosen the soil, and I couldn't get the rototiller to start. It has always been an "iffy" engine. So I tried to rake the soil loose. Too much gravel. But it is supposed to rain lightly tonight and tomorrow while staying above 50F and that would be good for germinating the seeds. So I thought about it...
Well, I had 2 trashbarrels of a half compost, half topsil mix. What the seeds want is to get thoroughly moistened to trigger germination, some soil to surround them to trigger rooting, some soil below for the roots to penetrate, and some regular moisture after that for the roots to absorb water and minerals to send upwards to stems and leaves.
So I used my 2 barrels of compost/soil on the area. It only came a 1/4" deep when spread around, but the soil under there is decent. So if they root, they will grow. Wildflowers are exactly that; "wild", They don't depend on people spreading fertilizer and in fact usually don't want it.
So I spread the meager compost/soil mix, scatterred the seeds, walked all over the surface (and using a flat rake to also press down), and then watered the area. Once lightly, waited 10 minutes and did it a gain, and repeated.
Why water before a light rain? To settle the soil around the seeds. There is less chance now of a rain causing the seeds to get washed into uneven pockets.
And I did it later than I should have. The package instruction say they want 2 weeks before the first hard frost. Well, we've already had a frost, but that was before I planted the seeds and the forecast is for at least 10 days without another freeze. So I may get lucky...
I'll know in a week to 10 days...
I needed to loosen the soil, and I couldn't get the rototiller to start. It has always been an "iffy" engine. So I tried to rake the soil loose. Too much gravel. But it is supposed to rain lightly tonight and tomorrow while staying above 50F and that would be good for germinating the seeds. So I thought about it...
Well, I had 2 trashbarrels of a half compost, half topsil mix. What the seeds want is to get thoroughly moistened to trigger germination, some soil to surround them to trigger rooting, some soil below for the roots to penetrate, and some regular moisture after that for the roots to absorb water and minerals to send upwards to stems and leaves.
So I used my 2 barrels of compost/soil on the area. It only came a 1/4" deep when spread around, but the soil under there is decent. So if they root, they will grow. Wildflowers are exactly that; "wild", They don't depend on people spreading fertilizer and in fact usually don't want it.
So I spread the meager compost/soil mix, scatterred the seeds, walked all over the surface (and using a flat rake to also press down), and then watered the area. Once lightly, waited 10 minutes and did it a gain, and repeated.
Why water before a light rain? To settle the soil around the seeds. There is less chance now of a rain causing the seeds to get washed into uneven pockets.
And I did it later than I should have. The package instruction say they want 2 weeks before the first hard frost. Well, we've already had a frost, but that was before I planted the seeds and the forecast is for at least 10 days without another freeze. So I may get lucky...
I'll know in a week to 10 days...
Friday, October 23, 2015
American Politics
Megen posted "What I don't understand is why politicians don't get it that voters want
politicians to act in the best interests of the country in a manner
that is consistent with the policy platform of the party that they
represent. All this time and money wasted on attempting to score petty
points while the big issues float on by is appalling."
I agree. In the US, people want politicians who agree with their most basic desires. I personally object to such selfish and biased opinions, but I recognize them as existing.
Personally, I think most voters are idiots. Too many can't comprehend basic science like climate change and human evolution. Some might even barely allow for gravity... LOL! It's partly religion (the percentage of atheists and agnostics here is ONLY about 15-20%).
I find my country to be one of the dumbest population of citizens in the industrialized world. It drives me crazy sometimes. On the other hand, as Winston Churchill once said, The Americans will do the right thing eventually.
Our political system is scatterred. The 3 branches (legislature, judiciary, and executive) are constantly in contention. Each has balanced powers.
That doesn't make things easy here. But it has worked pretty well so far. It is a GOOD thing that the Legislature can force Executive Branch members to answer questions, that the Executive Branch can bring pressure on the Legislature and that the Judiciary can make decisions about law but not have some army/mob to enforce it.
May everything stay in balance that way forever...
Now back to the politics of today...
The Congressional Representatives only care about what their own local voters think. Seriously, what I think here in Maryland is utterly irrelevant to what they think in other US States. And that is deliberate. However insane *I* think other State voters are doen't matter.
Now that isn't to say it was always this way. When I was younger, there were liberal and conservative Republicans, and liberal and conservative Democrats. The parties weren't aligned ideologically as they are now. Democrats and Republicans USED to be able to work together across party lines. No more...
I better stop, I'm getting angry...
Mark
I agree. In the US, people want politicians who agree with their most basic desires. I personally object to such selfish and biased opinions, but I recognize them as existing.
Personally, I think most voters are idiots. Too many can't comprehend basic science like climate change and human evolution. Some might even barely allow for gravity... LOL! It's partly religion (the percentage of atheists and agnostics here is ONLY about 15-20%).
I find my country to be one of the dumbest population of citizens in the industrialized world. It drives me crazy sometimes. On the other hand, as Winston Churchill once said, The Americans will do the right thing eventually.
Our political system is scatterred. The 3 branches (legislature, judiciary, and executive) are constantly in contention. Each has balanced powers.
That doesn't make things easy here. But it has worked pretty well so far. It is a GOOD thing that the Legislature can force Executive Branch members to answer questions, that the Executive Branch can bring pressure on the Legislature and that the Judiciary can make decisions about law but not have some army/mob to enforce it.
May everything stay in balance that way forever...
Now back to the politics of today...
The Congressional Representatives only care about what their own local voters think. Seriously, what I think here in Maryland is utterly irrelevant to what they think in other US States. And that is deliberate. However insane *I* think other State voters are doen't matter.
Now that isn't to say it was always this way. When I was younger, there were liberal and conservative Republicans, and liberal and conservative Democrats. The parties weren't aligned ideologically as they are now. Democrats and Republicans USED to be able to work together across party lines. No more...
I better stop, I'm getting angry...
Mark
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Politics and Congressional Inquisitions...
I watched a lot of the Congressional Benghazi Inquisition today. It was extreme and partisan.
I'm pretty much oriented to facts (to the point where if the side I agree with does a bad job being factual and engages in evasion and emotional responses I won't think they did a good job.
Hillary Clinton did a good job today. After 11 HOURS responding to partisan questions, many of which had no logical connection to the sad events at Benghazi, she did very well. And let me say that as someone who participated in chess tournaments when younger, I know something about the pain of just sitting for hours at a time. It is called "sitzfleisch". German, meaning literally "sitting on the flesh". It is a requirement for playing long chess games. I used to have it. Today, I am a pacer.
But Hillary sat, and listened, and sat, and listened. Sometimes she could get to give an answer. Mostly, she had to just sit and listen to Republican speeches, some of which applied to Benghazi but most didn't.
So who won the Republican Benghazi debate? Hillary. The lozenge did it... I'm not joking. When Hillary finally had to take a lozenge out of her purse after about 8 (9, 10?) hours into the inquisition, she had won. It meant she had spoken more than even a professional politician could be expected to manage.
And the Republicans hadn't been able to find she had done anything wrong about the sad events in Benghazi in 11 hours of questions...
I'm pretty much oriented to facts (to the point where if the side I agree with does a bad job being factual and engages in evasion and emotional responses I won't think they did a good job.
Hillary Clinton did a good job today. After 11 HOURS responding to partisan questions, many of which had no logical connection to the sad events at Benghazi, she did very well. And let me say that as someone who participated in chess tournaments when younger, I know something about the pain of just sitting for hours at a time. It is called "sitzfleisch". German, meaning literally "sitting on the flesh". It is a requirement for playing long chess games. I used to have it. Today, I am a pacer.
But Hillary sat, and listened, and sat, and listened. Sometimes she could get to give an answer. Mostly, she had to just sit and listen to Republican speeches, some of which applied to Benghazi but most didn't.
So who won the Republican Benghazi debate? Hillary. The lozenge did it... I'm not joking. When Hillary finally had to take a lozenge out of her purse after about 8 (9, 10?) hours into the inquisition, she had won. It meant she had spoken more than even a professional politician could be expected to manage.
And the Republicans hadn't been able to find she had done anything wrong about the sad events in Benghazi in 11 hours of questions...
Good Things
After mentioning the horrible beef short ribs recipe, Tuesday, I should mention that I did cook a lot of good food at the same time. So its not me.
Cooked 3 chicken thighs, bone in, baked, with my own version on "shake&bake" coating. Came out wonderfully. Sauteed 3 hot italian sausages for later use in a sausage stew with roasted green and red bell peppers, cannellini beans, minced carrots and tomatoes. Marinated some large shrimp in garlic, ginger, and onion for a few hours. Then coated them in bread crumbs and deep fried them. Added onion rings to the oil coated in pancake batter after that. I love my Fry Baby. Once a month though for the fried stuff.
And I smoked slabs of Boston Butt pork in my offset cooker. Came out great. Most was cut into smaller pieces and frozen, but I made a wonderful pork stew with the bit I kept in the fridge.
That was dinner. With steamed asparagus in a cheese sauce, a corn on the cob, and fresh green beans, with a tossed salad with homemade Italian dressing.
I don't eat too plainly, LOL! So that bad beef rib recipe the other day really annoyed me. Maybe that why I made sure to eat well today, though.
Tomorrow, I'll have tenderloin steak. I "fry" it, but with the good cast iron pans, its like broiling.
Cooked 3 chicken thighs, bone in, baked, with my own version on "shake&bake" coating. Came out wonderfully. Sauteed 3 hot italian sausages for later use in a sausage stew with roasted green and red bell peppers, cannellini beans, minced carrots and tomatoes. Marinated some large shrimp in garlic, ginger, and onion for a few hours. Then coated them in bread crumbs and deep fried them. Added onion rings to the oil coated in pancake batter after that. I love my Fry Baby. Once a month though for the fried stuff.
And I smoked slabs of Boston Butt pork in my offset cooker. Came out great. Most was cut into smaller pieces and frozen, but I made a wonderful pork stew with the bit I kept in the fridge.
That was dinner. With steamed asparagus in a cheese sauce, a corn on the cob, and fresh green beans, with a tossed salad with homemade Italian dressing.
I don't eat too plainly, LOL! So that bad beef rib recipe the other day really annoyed me. Maybe that why I made sure to eat well today, though.
Tomorrow, I'll have tenderloin steak. I "fry" it, but with the good cast iron pans, its like broiling.
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
The Old Car Blues
I drive a 2005 Toyota Highlander. Wonderful vehicle. I don't drive very much, so MPG don't matter (10 years old and 25,000 miles). Its even garage-kept and the garage is in the house. The temperature never gets below 45F Maybe 50F.
But the darn thing just won't start in the Winter. The dealership says I don't drive the car often enough for the battery to stay charged. I doubt that. The past 3 Winters, I kept jump-starting the battery from 2 old boat batteries and THEY sat around in the car and the garage for months fully charged even using them to start the car every few days.
There has to be something in the electrical system going wrong, right? The internet says (and we all know the internet is never wrong *koff, koff*), that the starter solenoid brushes have gone bad. The dealership says that the startes don't HAVE brushes anymore (but upon my interrogation, they admitted that actually, they do, but they just replace the whole starter when needed). So they lie without shame...
I'm waiting for a call back about the cost of replacing the whole starter unit (like it takes them hours to figure the cost of replacing a starter?). I know the part costs $200, so they will probably want $600 for the job. I hope solves the problem, but it might not and the options are to jump start the car all Winter (AGAIN) every time I want to drive out for an errand, or buy a new car.
I told the TOYOTA dealership that if I replace the car it will be with a Subaru Forrester. That got some attention.
But is seems stupid to replace a car with only 25,000 miles on it. I'm not into having the latest car or new gadgets. I tend to buy highly-rated cars and drive them until they DIE! And I don't care WHAT car it is or how old, 25,000 miles is too new to die. I'm still on the original tires!
I can't wait to see what weird explanation the dealership offers when they call back. I suppose I will have to go to Corporate HQ for some more expert solution. But I will be hopeful until I can't be...
Mark
But the darn thing just won't start in the Winter. The dealership says I don't drive the car often enough for the battery to stay charged. I doubt that. The past 3 Winters, I kept jump-starting the battery from 2 old boat batteries and THEY sat around in the car and the garage for months fully charged even using them to start the car every few days.
There has to be something in the electrical system going wrong, right? The internet says (and we all know the internet is never wrong *koff, koff*), that the starter solenoid brushes have gone bad. The dealership says that the startes don't HAVE brushes anymore (but upon my interrogation, they admitted that actually, they do, but they just replace the whole starter when needed). So they lie without shame...
I'm waiting for a call back about the cost of replacing the whole starter unit (like it takes them hours to figure the cost of replacing a starter?). I know the part costs $200, so they will probably want $600 for the job. I hope solves the problem, but it might not and the options are to jump start the car all Winter (AGAIN) every time I want to drive out for an errand, or buy a new car.
I told the TOYOTA dealership that if I replace the car it will be with a Subaru Forrester. That got some attention.
But is seems stupid to replace a car with only 25,000 miles on it. I'm not into having the latest car or new gadgets. I tend to buy highly-rated cars and drive them until they DIE! And I don't care WHAT car it is or how old, 25,000 miles is too new to die. I'm still on the original tires!
I can't wait to see what weird explanation the dealership offers when they call back. I suppose I will have to go to Corporate HQ for some more expert solution. But I will be hopeful until I can't be...
Mark
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Bad Recipe
I like beef short ribs. Tastey stuff, but I've never found a good recipe to keep them moist the next day. So I tried one online for the slow cooker. It sounded interesting. Onions, brown sugar, ketchup, red wine vinegar... And make a gravy after.
OMG, it was horrible! I have certainly made stuff that I wouldn't serve to friends and eaten it myself just not to be wasteful, but THIS took some work to make palatable. I had to remove the short ribs from the godawful concoction, rinse it all clean, and then remake a standard beef stew (potatoes, carrots, celery, tomato and add the ribs back in. It is "OK".
Who makes these recipes and who on Earth rates them 5 stars of 5? OK, tastes differ, but this had conflicting tastes only an orc could love...
OMG, it was horrible! I have certainly made stuff that I wouldn't serve to friends and eaten it myself just not to be wasteful, but THIS took some work to make palatable. I had to remove the short ribs from the godawful concoction, rinse it all clean, and then remake a standard beef stew (potatoes, carrots, celery, tomato and add the ribs back in. It is "OK".
Who makes these recipes and who on Earth rates them 5 stars of 5? OK, tastes differ, but this had conflicting tastes only an orc could love...
Monday, October 19, 2015
Oh I Did A Stupid...
I kept calling the car dealership yesterday. Kept leaving messages with the Service Department. Got at the online chat help, etc, to try and get an answer to a battery problem...
It was Sunday... I thought it was Monday... ERK! No wonder no one answered the phones...
Being retired is like that sometimes.
When I retired, I told my co-workers I didn't want some fake gold plaque, I wanted a big digital display gadget that simply showed the day of the week! This is why.
LOL!
And yes there IS this...
And YES, I did just order this... It wasn't available when I retired. Trust me, I searched...
What annoys me is that some time in the future, there will be a version that shows the YEAR. And I will buy IT...
For you younger ones, don't laff TOO loud; for you there will be an App for that... And you'll buy it. Well, OK, you will just ask your implant what day it is. But you get the idea... ;)
"They're coming to take me away ho ho he he ha ha
To the happy home with trees and flowers and chirping birds
And basket weavers who sit and smile and twiddle their thumbs and toes
They're coming to take me away ha ha."
I hope.
Its a joke,
But you never noke.
.. Mark
It was Sunday... I thought it was Monday... ERK! No wonder no one answered the phones...
Being retired is like that sometimes.
When I retired, I told my co-workers I didn't want some fake gold plaque, I wanted a big digital display gadget that simply showed the day of the week! This is why.
LOL!
And yes there IS this...
What annoys me is that some time in the future, there will be a version that shows the YEAR. And I will buy IT...
For you younger ones, don't laff TOO loud; for you there will be an App for that... And you'll buy it. Well, OK, you will just ask your implant what day it is. But you get the idea... ;)
"They're coming to take me away ho ho he he ha ha
To the happy home with trees and flowers and chirping birds
And basket weavers who sit and smile and twiddle their thumbs and toes
They're coming to take me away ha ha."
I hope.
Its a joke,
But you never noke.
.. Mark
Sunday, October 18, 2015
The Digging Edging Trenches Blues
I am getting rather tired of digging trenches for edging around the new landscaping areas... So I'm writing about it. So here are "the blues". Or at least, "the aquas"...
"I'm grabbin my shovel,
And digging the ditch.
All round the outside,
Then inward, kapish?
Its tedious working
And boring as Hell.
Can't wait til it's over,
I'm sure you can tell.
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....*
The shovel's 6 inches
The edgings 80 feet.
That's 160 times,
Foot and shovel must meet.
And sometimes there are rocks,
And the pounding repeats,
It aint nice at all
Pounding shovel with feets.
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
First it looks like no progress,
Just a few feet at most.
But then its some more feet,
And the ending is close.
But I'm fooled by the shadows,
And I finally see.
I'm just half-around,
Can that possibly be?
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
I wish I could do
Like Paul Bunyan did.
Drag a huge axe behind me
So a ditch I could dig.**
But I finally finished,
Halalluah I said.
Now all I have left,
Is to grub-hoe and dredge.
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
I'll wait til tomorrow
The grub-hoe work instead.
For now I have cramps
So I'm going to bed!
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
* Some things I do are lefty, some righty. I think I was a natural lefty as a tot but taught to be a righty. Sometimes I think that affects my thinking too.
** Legend says Paul Bunyan got tired of carrying his huge axe on his shoulder so he dragged it behind him once, creating the Grand Canyon.
But seriously, the end is in sight. I did finally finish digging both around the outside and the inside of the edging and tomorrow I can scoop the loosened soil out of the trench and put the edging in. There are a few shallow spots with largish stones that need to be cleared, and there are apparently 2 places where there are tree roots. I'll cut the edging to fit over those. Just one more bit of work, LOL! But backfilling the edging is the easiest part and will only take half a day.
Then I can finally plant! I sure didn't expect it to take this long. But I routinely under-estimate the time projects take. Maybe that's what allows me to take on some projects. I suppose if I knew how much time each one would actually take, I would never start any. And then where would I be?
I guess I would rather under-estimate the effort and DO the projects then accurately estimate them and NOT do them...
"I'm grabbin my shovel,
And digging the ditch.
All round the outside,
Then inward, kapish?
Its tedious working
And boring as Hell.
Can't wait til it's over,
I'm sure you can tell.
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....*
The shovel's 6 inches
The edgings 80 feet.
That's 160 times,
Foot and shovel must meet.
And sometimes there are rocks,
And the pounding repeats,
It aint nice at all
Pounding shovel with feets.
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
First it looks like no progress,
Just a few feet at most.
But then its some more feet,
And the ending is close.
But I'm fooled by the shadows,
And I finally see.
I'm just half-around,
Can that possibly be?
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
I wish I could do
Like Paul Bunyan did.
Drag a huge axe behind me
So a ditch I could dig.**
But I finally finished,
Halalluah I said.
Now all I have left,
Is to grub-hoe and dredge.
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
I'll wait til tomorrow
The grub-hoe work instead.
For now I have cramps
So I'm going to bed!
I got the busted cramped left foot jambed down on the shovel blues....
* Some things I do are lefty, some righty. I think I was a natural lefty as a tot but taught to be a righty. Sometimes I think that affects my thinking too.
** Legend says Paul Bunyan got tired of carrying his huge axe on his shoulder so he dragged it behind him once, creating the Grand Canyon.
But seriously, the end is in sight. I did finally finish digging both around the outside and the inside of the edging and tomorrow I can scoop the loosened soil out of the trench and put the edging in. There are a few shallow spots with largish stones that need to be cleared, and there are apparently 2 places where there are tree roots. I'll cut the edging to fit over those. Just one more bit of work, LOL! But backfilling the edging is the easiest part and will only take half a day.
I guess I would rather under-estimate the effort and DO the projects then accurately estimate them and NOT do them...
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
Solved It
OK, so the planting timing problem was caused by my wanting to plant lots of spring-flowering bulbs where I was planting wildflowers earlier and not wanting to walk on the sprouting wildflowers. I had to think on that a while.
Solution? Walking-boards and cheap plastic tubs.
The walking boards will be some pieces of 2"x12" boards left over from the deck construction last year. With small pieces of 4"x4" scrap wood attached to the bottom, the footprint will be minimal, but allow me to walk out to the pre-dug holes for the wire cages for protecting the spring flowering tulips and hyacinths from the voles.
Each spot for the spring flowering bulbs will have a predug hole with a cheap plastic tub of the soil there. I will walk out on the supported boards, lift the tub, set the wire cage down, add an inch of soil, set the bulbs down, add the rest of the soil, walk off the board and lift the board off the wildflower sprouts.
Every problem has a solution...
Solution? Walking-boards and cheap plastic tubs.
The walking boards will be some pieces of 2"x12" boards left over from the deck construction last year. With small pieces of 4"x4" scrap wood attached to the bottom, the footprint will be minimal, but allow me to walk out to the pre-dug holes for the wire cages for protecting the spring flowering tulips and hyacinths from the voles.
Each spot for the spring flowering bulbs will have a predug hole with a cheap plastic tub of the soil there. I will walk out on the supported boards, lift the tub, set the wire cage down, add an inch of soil, set the bulbs down, add the rest of the soil, walk off the board and lift the board off the wildflower sprouts.
Every problem has a solution...
Monday, October 12, 2015
Crocuses Border
While I was oredering spring floering bulbs (daffodils, tulips, hyanciths) for the new plantng areas, I also had the great idea of replanting the border to the older flowerbeds along the property line. Sure, why not? Like I had nothing else to do. I get myself in these situations where work seems easy when I'm looking at plants online and "gee, how hard could it be to do that"?
ARGHHH!
So... I used to have a border on the old flowerbed with alternating 1' sections of yellow and purple crocuses. The voles ate most of them the first year. But one section survives (for reasons I do not know). So I want to replicate the gorgeous look of the row of alternating yellow and purple crocuses, but protected from the voles.
The solution is 1/2 "galvanized steel mesh wire cages buried just under ground. OK, that requires building the cages, digging up the soil, and filling it back in. It could be a lot worse. At least THIS soil is well aged and loose, so digging it up is easy.
The real work will be making the cages. But I am pleased to say I have solved that. In design anyway. I planned the cages 8" long, 6" wide, and 4" deep. But then there was the problem of cutting the shapes out from the existing 3' width rolls of 1/2" wire mesh I bought.
Well, I started drawing out shapes of unfolded cages. You remember those IQ or SAT questions about "what is this shape unfolded"? I got those every time. Easy Peasy... So I sat down with graph paper and started laying out the shapes foldable into cages. And because the stuff is a bit expensive and I'm cheap, I kept playing with shapes until they worked out with NO wasted material.
Took an hour of updating software to get the sketch to scan, LOL! My printer/scanner drivers always seem to be out-of-date...
I'll try to clean this of on some drawing program, but it basically means that I (or you) can make twelve 8" long x 6" wide x 4" deep cages from 5' 4" of 1/2" hardware cloth. But it means I found a layout of mostly foldable parts and some few ends that need to be wired in place to make cages with NO WASTE!
And I've made a form for the bending out of scrap 2"x6"x8" wood. Its simple enough. Cut a nominal 6" wide 8" long and screw and glue supports under it. Or just screw and glue 3 stacked onto each other.
If you have questions about that, email me at cavebear2118 AT verizon DOT net.
My plan is to have an 8" cage, 4" space for an annual plant like a marigold or zinnia, then another 8" cage along the entire 75' flowerbed edge. So I'll need 75 cages for 75'. 12 cages per 5' 4" = 64' of the cage mesh, and I have 150' of it. The rest will be used up in 18"x18" cages for the tulips and hyacinths in the new areas.
It all comes together, see? :)
With apologies to The Beatles:
"And, in the end,
The flowers you grow
Are equal to the work you do... "
Or to put it another way I read once, "If you like bacon, you need to get down in the mud and keep the hogs happy". Meaning that whatever you do, you can do it poorly or well. Poorly lasts a couple years. Well, lasts a lot longer. Doing things well takes less work in the long run.
ARGHHH!
So... I used to have a border on the old flowerbed with alternating 1' sections of yellow and purple crocuses. The voles ate most of them the first year. But one section survives (for reasons I do not know). So I want to replicate the gorgeous look of the row of alternating yellow and purple crocuses, but protected from the voles.
The solution is 1/2 "galvanized steel mesh wire cages buried just under ground. OK, that requires building the cages, digging up the soil, and filling it back in. It could be a lot worse. At least THIS soil is well aged and loose, so digging it up is easy.
The real work will be making the cages. But I am pleased to say I have solved that. In design anyway. I planned the cages 8" long, 6" wide, and 4" deep. But then there was the problem of cutting the shapes out from the existing 3' width rolls of 1/2" wire mesh I bought.
Took an hour of updating software to get the sketch to scan, LOL! My printer/scanner drivers always seem to be out-of-date...
I'll try to clean this of on some drawing program, but it basically means that I (or you) can make twelve 8" long x 6" wide x 4" deep cages from 5' 4" of 1/2" hardware cloth. But it means I found a layout of mostly foldable parts and some few ends that need to be wired in place to make cages with NO WASTE!
And I've made a form for the bending out of scrap 2"x6"x8" wood. Its simple enough. Cut a nominal 6" wide 8" long and screw and glue supports under it. Or just screw and glue 3 stacked onto each other.
If you have questions about that, email me at cavebear2118 AT verizon DOT net.
My plan is to have an 8" cage, 4" space for an annual plant like a marigold or zinnia, then another 8" cage along the entire 75' flowerbed edge. So I'll need 75 cages for 75'. 12 cages per 5' 4" = 64' of the cage mesh, and I have 150' of it. The rest will be used up in 18"x18" cages for the tulips and hyacinths in the new areas.
It all comes together, see? :)
With apologies to The Beatles:
"And, in the end,
The flowers you grow
Are equal to the work you do... "
Or to put it another way I read once, "If you like bacon, you need to get down in the mud and keep the hogs happy". Meaning that whatever you do, you can do it poorly or well. Poorly lasts a couple years. Well, lasts a lot longer. Doing things well takes less work in the long run.
Sunday, October 11, 2015
The Three New Planting Areas
You ever get yourself planned for more than you can do by the time you should? Of course you have. Think of that last party you threw... For me it is planting stuff. And the order of planting stuff can get awkward too.
I'm tired of digging ditches for edging. It's harder than I thought for the 3 new planting areas.
Perspective is strange. That far one is as big around as the near one. They are 80', 40', and 80' respectively. So I had to dig narrow trenches 5" deep to set the edging down mostly in-ground. The far area ground has a lot of gravel and rocks. Half the digging required a leverage fork to dig dirt loose along the perimeter, a pick to loosen the rocks, a trenching shovel to scoop the loosened mixture out, and a grub hoe blade (the other side of the pick) to chip away the bottom to get in uniformly 5" deep.
Naturally, all those tools have short handles, so I was either bent over or on my knees the whole way around with each tool.
OK, it's getting easier as I move toward the house. The soil is better. Maybe. Fewer rocks, but more heavy clay. The clay stick to the tools and I have to bang them on the ground to get the stuff off! I was going to say I can't decide which is worse, but actually they both are. :(
Then of course, the edging has to be set in the trench and the trench has to be refilled. More fun... Well, it's easier to backfill the soil than to dig it up, but it still takes some work.
So I have the far area finished (took 3 days of off-and-on work). More "off" than "on" because I'm way past 30 (my vague recollection of when I was at my physically best). At 65, I'm at the point where I don't mind working hard with rest in between but darn don't want to die of a heart attack just to plant some flowers. At 30, that possibility never even occurred to me. So I make sure to stop every 15 minutes and relax for 5.
I finished the middle edged area today. Just the nearest one left to do, and I am pretty sure that area as the easiest soil to dig in. I might get that last edging in in 2 days.
But today, it occurred to me that I have a timing problem with the plantings. The far area will have a natural wildflower area and some transplanted purple coneflowers, goldenrod, and black-eyed susans. The smaller middle area will have only the invasive Lychimastria Firecracker. The nearest area will have half-shade wildflowers. So far, so good...
But 2 weeks ago, I had the great idea of planting a lot of spring-flowering bulbs among the areas for early color (and most enclosed in below-ground 1/2" wire mesh cages for protection from the voles and squirrels). Well, the daffodils don't need protection, but the tulips and hyacinths do, and that causes a problem.
If a plant the wildflower seeds in the far are now (as I should), they will be JUST growing when it is time to plant the spring-flowering bulbs in mid November. Ack! I would be walking all over the new plants. I can't plant them now, as they won't arrive until early November.
The middle area isn't a problem. The Lychimastria can't be transplanted until they go dormant, and that will be early November. So they and the spring-flowering bulbs go in at the same time. The near area isn't a problem, because the half-sunny wildflowers will get sown in Spring and I can easily walk around the emerging bulbs then.
I'll have to think about how to manage the planting of that far area some more. I'm not worried; there is always a solution to any problem. I just have to find it.
And I have more on the landscaping To-Do-List. 200 crocus bulbs to plant in vole-proof cages. But that's for the next post...
I'm tired of digging ditches for edging. It's harder than I thought for the 3 new planting areas.
Naturally, all those tools have short handles, so I was either bent over or on my knees the whole way around with each tool.
Then of course, the edging has to be set in the trench and the trench has to be refilled. More fun... Well, it's easier to backfill the soil than to dig it up, but it still takes some work.
So I have the far area finished (took 3 days of off-and-on work). More "off" than "on" because I'm way past 30 (my vague recollection of when I was at my physically best). At 65, I'm at the point where I don't mind working hard with rest in between but darn don't want to die of a heart attack just to plant some flowers. At 30, that possibility never even occurred to me. So I make sure to stop every 15 minutes and relax for 5.
I finished the middle edged area today. Just the nearest one left to do, and I am pretty sure that area as the easiest soil to dig in. I might get that last edging in in 2 days.
But today, it occurred to me that I have a timing problem with the plantings. The far area will have a natural wildflower area and some transplanted purple coneflowers, goldenrod, and black-eyed susans. The smaller middle area will have only the invasive Lychimastria Firecracker. The nearest area will have half-shade wildflowers. So far, so good...
But 2 weeks ago, I had the great idea of planting a lot of spring-flowering bulbs among the areas for early color (and most enclosed in below-ground 1/2" wire mesh cages for protection from the voles and squirrels). Well, the daffodils don't need protection, but the tulips and hyacinths do, and that causes a problem.
If a plant the wildflower seeds in the far are now (as I should), they will be JUST growing when it is time to plant the spring-flowering bulbs in mid November. Ack! I would be walking all over the new plants. I can't plant them now, as they won't arrive until early November.
The middle area isn't a problem. The Lychimastria can't be transplanted until they go dormant, and that will be early November. So they and the spring-flowering bulbs go in at the same time. The near area isn't a problem, because the half-sunny wildflowers will get sown in Spring and I can easily walk around the emerging bulbs then.
I'll have to think about how to manage the planting of that far area some more. I'm not worried; there is always a solution to any problem. I just have to find it.
And I have more on the landscaping To-Do-List. 200 crocus bulbs to plant in vole-proof cages. But that's for the next post...
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Change In Wildflower Design
I was looking at the 2 areas I was surrounding by inset edging, and realized an error. I had intended the Lachymistra Firecracker, a very pretty purple-leaf and yellow-flower plant, to be enclosed in a small area I could mow around and prevent from spreading.
But I laid out 2 large areas. OOPS! So I had 5 40' lengths of edging; 3 in one shape and 2 in a circle. Time to change that. I changed things to a 40' circumference circle for the Lachymistra Firecracker; an 80' circumference circle for the transplanted Black-Eyed Susans, Purple Coneflowers, Dwarf Butterfly Bushes, Knockout Roses, and Goldenrods; and a kidney-bean shape of 80' circumference for the wildflower seeds and some local weeds with rather nice flowers (they may be volunteer Pinks from some other yard).
So now the edging looks like this...
The spaces between the edging are mowable widths...
And nice walkable paths...
I finished the digging of the trench to set the edging down in for the farthest back part today. It was exhausting. The trench had to be edged with a garden fork to get through the stones or regular spade where the soil was stone-free, loosened in the center with a heavy pick, and loose soil removed with a trenching shovel.
And I'm only 2/5ths done!
But an hour a day gets things progressing. 3 more hours will do all the edging-trench digging, and who can't use more exercise?
But I laid out 2 large areas. OOPS! So I had 5 40' lengths of edging; 3 in one shape and 2 in a circle. Time to change that. I changed things to a 40' circumference circle for the Lachymistra Firecracker; an 80' circumference circle for the transplanted Black-Eyed Susans, Purple Coneflowers, Dwarf Butterfly Bushes, Knockout Roses, and Goldenrods; and a kidney-bean shape of 80' circumference for the wildflower seeds and some local weeds with rather nice flowers (they may be volunteer Pinks from some other yard).
So now the edging looks like this...
But an hour a day gets things progressing. 3 more hours will do all the edging-trench digging, and who can't use more exercise?
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Appliance Failure
I hate it when major appliances fail. They're "major" appliances not just because they are large, but because they are expensive and important (My M/V might object to being left out of the group since I use it daily). And it takes some research and time to replace them.
Minor appliances are easy. Your M/V fails, you get another anywhere in 30 minutes. Same with toasters, slow-cookers, fans, radios, clocks, etc. But try to replace a dishwasher in less than a week...
Anyway, I noticed after my usual dinner binge of opening and closing the refrigerator a dozen times for this or that, that the thermometer was up to 50F. I keep it at 35-37F, and that is the middle cold setting (4 out of 7). But I use a lot of fresh foods and it warms up briefly inside being opened so much.
But when I went to put leftovers away an hour later, it was still 50. Uh, Oh!!! Hoping it was the refrigerator thermometer, I also stuck my digital cooking thermometer probe in there.
I checked for internal airflow blockages, but it is designed so that blocking the internal airflow is nearly impossible. I distinctly recall from the manual that no cleaning of external coils is required, and indeed after pulling the refrigerator out a few inches and shining a flashlight behind it, there is nothing to clean.
This morning, it was still 50! *GLOOM*
I've gone through a few refrigerators in my time. It's always the condensor, and replacing the condenser is most of the cost of a new refrigerator. But you pay $100 for the serviceman to tell you that.
So I jacked up the cooling button to max. After 4 hours, it got back down to 37F. I can live with that for a week while I choose a new refrigerator. But it does mean that a lot of stuff was held at 50F for 36 hours. Which means stuff like mayonnaise and salad dressing are dangerous. I don't keep fresh meat, so no loss there. Veggies and fruits are safe. You can tell when they go bad anyway. So I haven't lost much food.
With the cooling selection on "maximum" I can wait a few days. At least it's not like having the A/C die in the middle of Summer or the Furnace die in Mid-Winter...
The choice for a new one is ongoing. When the previous refrigerator died (sadly only 5 years ago) I replaced it immediately without doing much research. I like bottom-freezer models and I went to one store and bought the cheapest most energy-efficient model they had in black. Bad move...
This time, I'm going for the largest, best temperature-recovery time, bottom-freezer, with slide out shelves, in black, high-reliability-rated refrigerator I can find that will fit in the space. Right now, according to Consumer Reports magazine website, that seems to be a Kenmore Elite 79043.
I decided to ignore the energy-efficiency rating. I don't do that lightly. But I discovered something surprising about refrigerators. The big low-efficient refrigerators cost about $59 per year to operate. The best-efficiency (with slow temperature recovery times) cost about $40 per year. The difference is irrelevant. Why would I want a refrigerator that ages my milk faster each week to save $19 per year?
Its not like choosing a car that saves $1,000 in gas per year... $19 is the difference between most and least energy costs? Who cares?
There is more to the decision. I keep an older refrigerator in the basement for bulk veggie and fruit storage, garden seeds, beer, wine, bird suet, sodas, etc. I bet it is so energy-inefficient that I've paid for a new one several times over. I should have replaced IT years ago...
So the new one will go in the kitchen, the current one will go in the basement (where 50F is just fine for the things I keep there), and the deliverymen will haul away the oldest one for junk.
Looks like I am going shopping at Sears tomorrow!
Minor appliances are easy. Your M/V fails, you get another anywhere in 30 minutes. Same with toasters, slow-cookers, fans, radios, clocks, etc. But try to replace a dishwasher in less than a week...
Anyway, I noticed after my usual dinner binge of opening and closing the refrigerator a dozen times for this or that, that the thermometer was up to 50F. I keep it at 35-37F, and that is the middle cold setting (4 out of 7). But I use a lot of fresh foods and it warms up briefly inside being opened so much.
But when I went to put leftovers away an hour later, it was still 50. Uh, Oh!!! Hoping it was the refrigerator thermometer, I also stuck my digital cooking thermometer probe in there.
I checked for internal airflow blockages, but it is designed so that blocking the internal airflow is nearly impossible. I distinctly recall from the manual that no cleaning of external coils is required, and indeed after pulling the refrigerator out a few inches and shining a flashlight behind it, there is nothing to clean.
This morning, it was still 50! *GLOOM*
I've gone through a few refrigerators in my time. It's always the condensor, and replacing the condenser is most of the cost of a new refrigerator. But you pay $100 for the serviceman to tell you that.
So I jacked up the cooling button to max. After 4 hours, it got back down to 37F. I can live with that for a week while I choose a new refrigerator. But it does mean that a lot of stuff was held at 50F for 36 hours. Which means stuff like mayonnaise and salad dressing are dangerous. I don't keep fresh meat, so no loss there. Veggies and fruits are safe. You can tell when they go bad anyway. So I haven't lost much food.
With the cooling selection on "maximum" I can wait a few days. At least it's not like having the A/C die in the middle of Summer or the Furnace die in Mid-Winter...
The choice for a new one is ongoing. When the previous refrigerator died (sadly only 5 years ago) I replaced it immediately without doing much research. I like bottom-freezer models and I went to one store and bought the cheapest most energy-efficient model they had in black. Bad move...
This time, I'm going for the largest, best temperature-recovery time, bottom-freezer, with slide out shelves, in black, high-reliability-rated refrigerator I can find that will fit in the space. Right now, according to Consumer Reports magazine website, that seems to be a Kenmore Elite 79043.
I decided to ignore the energy-efficiency rating. I don't do that lightly. But I discovered something surprising about refrigerators. The big low-efficient refrigerators cost about $59 per year to operate. The best-efficiency (with slow temperature recovery times) cost about $40 per year. The difference is irrelevant. Why would I want a refrigerator that ages my milk faster each week to save $19 per year?
Its not like choosing a car that saves $1,000 in gas per year... $19 is the difference between most and least energy costs? Who cares?
There is more to the decision. I keep an older refrigerator in the basement for bulk veggie and fruit storage, garden seeds, beer, wine, bird suet, sodas, etc. I bet it is so energy-inefficient that I've paid for a new one several times over. I should have replaced IT years ago...
So the new one will go in the kitchen, the current one will go in the basement (where 50F is just fine for the things I keep there), and the deliverymen will haul away the oldest one for junk.
Looks like I am going shopping at Sears tomorrow!
Sunday, October 4, 2015
New Wildflower Enclosures
I've mentioned that the newly leveled areas in the back yard are being made into mostly wildflowers and some selected shrubs. The first thing to do is set the edging into the ground. I'm delayed on that because of the rain. That newly-exposed soil is so loose that the rain has made it too muddy to walk on.
But at least I can plan on what I'm going to plant there. First, the nearest edged area is going to be mostly wildflowers with some existing Goldenrods, Purple Coneflowers, and Black-Eyed-Susans transplanted from existing locations for structure. The rain has been a good thing for that. The soil is now deeply moist and that will encourage roots to grow deep rather than shallow. And when you dig up existing plants, the rootballs hold together better when moist compared to dry dusty soil like I had until several days ago. And the plants will be full of moisture themselves and less like to suffer transplant shock when some of their roots are cut off in the move.
And it occurred to me that I could plant a LOT of Spring-flowering bulbs in that area for blooms before the wildflowers grow and bloom in Summer. But the wildflower seeds need to be scattered and raked in soon, while the transplants and bulbs need to planted in early November.
So that left an awkward situation. I didn't want to waste a lot of wildflower seeds by planting them next week, and then digging them up to add transplants and bulbs later.
I love problems like that. Really, I do. Solving problems is fun! So I bought a pack of 150 styrofoam plates. Sound strange? I'm using them as markers where transplants and Spring Bulbs will go. So I can spread the wildflower seeds without wasting them (I'll just brush them off the styrofoam plates).
The Spring bulbs will by mostly Daffodils, but there will be Tulips and Hyacinths too. The Tulips and Hyacinths around here get eaten right out by the voles, but I'll fool THEM! I'm making barrier cages from 1/2" hardware cloth. More on that in a future post...
I can't wait for the soil to dry enough for me to get started!
But at least I can plan on what I'm going to plant there. First, the nearest edged area is going to be mostly wildflowers with some existing Goldenrods, Purple Coneflowers, and Black-Eyed-Susans transplanted from existing locations for structure. The rain has been a good thing for that. The soil is now deeply moist and that will encourage roots to grow deep rather than shallow. And when you dig up existing plants, the rootballs hold together better when moist compared to dry dusty soil like I had until several days ago. And the plants will be full of moisture themselves and less like to suffer transplant shock when some of their roots are cut off in the move.
And it occurred to me that I could plant a LOT of Spring-flowering bulbs in that area for blooms before the wildflowers grow and bloom in Summer. But the wildflower seeds need to be scattered and raked in soon, while the transplants and bulbs need to planted in early November.
So that left an awkward situation. I didn't want to waste a lot of wildflower seeds by planting them next week, and then digging them up to add transplants and bulbs later.
I love problems like that. Really, I do. Solving problems is fun! So I bought a pack of 150 styrofoam plates. Sound strange? I'm using them as markers where transplants and Spring Bulbs will go. So I can spread the wildflower seeds without wasting them (I'll just brush them off the styrofoam plates).
The Spring bulbs will by mostly Daffodils, but there will be Tulips and Hyacinths too. The Tulips and Hyacinths around here get eaten right out by the voles, but I'll fool THEM! I'm making barrier cages from 1/2" hardware cloth. More on that in a future post...
I can't wait for the soil to dry enough for me to get started!
Friday, October 2, 2015
Heavy Rain On New Lawn
After more than a month without and measurable rain, I was beginning to think I could ignore the possibility of rain in my new lawn plans. Silly me...
I got the new lawn soil leveled and planted in the front yard in plenty of time for the soil to settle and the new grass to emerge and set down roots. The back yard waited. I got the back leveled and seeded about 10 days ago. The grass barely emerged when we finally got some rain. And of course, not just some rain, but a lot of it. We have had 3.75" so far.
That left me 3 concerns for the front yard.
First, would serious heavy rain overflow the drainage easement and wash some of my new soil away at the edge? Second, would the heavy rain wash some of the new grass away and/or create runoff ditches? Third, would I discover new places of standing water (part of what my soil-raising efforts were intended to stop)?
The first is uncertain. I can't see any drainage edge erosion, but I can't get too close to it to be sure. The new soil is too soft to walk on to go investigate.
The second worked fine. There was a full day of light drizzle and that settled the soil a bit, and the soil was so dry it soaked up almost all the rain. The grass seems to have stayed in place.
The third isn't so good. I have a 4'x10' standing puddle in the front of the lawn. OK, there is supposed to be a "swale" there ("a slight depression for directing water runoff", in my case to storm drains at either side of the front of the yard). But it ISN'T supposed to have a low spot that holds water.
It wasn't obvious by eyeballing the new soil level, but water never lies. There is a low spot that won't drain in either direction. So I need some more soil to add there. I don't need much; a cubic yard (cubic meter) should do fine. I just need the rain to flow off toward either drain. It could be worse; my adjacent upstreet neighbor has an actual concrete channel for a swale (makes for awkward mowing, it keeps filling with dirt and debris, and it is ugly).
The back yard did not fare so well with the rain. I planted the grass seed there 8 days ago and it was barely up when the rains hit. The day before the rains, there was a uniform fuzz of new grass. Today, there are large bare spots and a few channels 2" deep where the rainfall flowed downslope. I'm going to have to relevel that and plant new seed. Fortunately, a local garden expert addressed that very question online Saturday and said there was still time to plant new grass seed in a week after the soil dries out a bit. Of course, that's assuming we don't get another hard rain in a week (none forecast though).
Well, nothing is ever guaranteed when planting anything. Sometimes, you have to do it again. At least I'm not depending on grass as food, LOL! If I was a cow, this would be a lot more serious.
I got the new lawn soil leveled and planted in the front yard in plenty of time for the soil to settle and the new grass to emerge and set down roots. The back yard waited. I got the back leveled and seeded about 10 days ago. The grass barely emerged when we finally got some rain. And of course, not just some rain, but a lot of it. We have had 3.75" so far.
That left me 3 concerns for the front yard.
First, would serious heavy rain overflow the drainage easement and wash some of my new soil away at the edge? Second, would the heavy rain wash some of the new grass away and/or create runoff ditches? Third, would I discover new places of standing water (part of what my soil-raising efforts were intended to stop)?
The first is uncertain. I can't see any drainage edge erosion, but I can't get too close to it to be sure. The new soil is too soft to walk on to go investigate.
The second worked fine. There was a full day of light drizzle and that settled the soil a bit, and the soil was so dry it soaked up almost all the rain. The grass seems to have stayed in place.
The third isn't so good. I have a 4'x10' standing puddle in the front of the lawn. OK, there is supposed to be a "swale" there ("a slight depression for directing water runoff", in my case to storm drains at either side of the front of the yard). But it ISN'T supposed to have a low spot that holds water.
It wasn't obvious by eyeballing the new soil level, but water never lies. There is a low spot that won't drain in either direction. So I need some more soil to add there. I don't need much; a cubic yard (cubic meter) should do fine. I just need the rain to flow off toward either drain. It could be worse; my adjacent upstreet neighbor has an actual concrete channel for a swale (makes for awkward mowing, it keeps filling with dirt and debris, and it is ugly).
The back yard did not fare so well with the rain. I planted the grass seed there 8 days ago and it was barely up when the rains hit. The day before the rains, there was a uniform fuzz of new grass. Today, there are large bare spots and a few channels 2" deep where the rainfall flowed downslope. I'm going to have to relevel that and plant new seed. Fortunately, a local garden expert addressed that very question online Saturday and said there was still time to plant new grass seed in a week after the soil dries out a bit. Of course, that's assuming we don't get another hard rain in a week (none forecast though).
Well, nothing is ever guaranteed when planting anything. Sometimes, you have to do it again. At least I'm not depending on grass as food, LOL! If I was a cow, this would be a lot more serious.
Monday, September 28, 2015
Baseball
Well, The Washington Nationals season is effectively over. It was a real crash...
Baseball can break your heart. It just isn't like other sports.
In American football, a team can go 14-2 or 2-14. The better team just always seems to win over the season by quite a bit and every time. The good teams win and the bad teams are horrid.
In Basketball, the best teams are so far above the worst teams that you can predict the winners ahead of time easily.
Baseball just doesn't go like that. The best teams only reach 60% wins; the worst, well, let's say 33%. On any given series, the same teams will have games of 14-2, 5-6, and 1-2. There is almost no sense to it.
And the sad part is that so many favorite players will be traded away as a result. And some new ones will arrive.
It drives me crazy.
Baseball can break your heart. It just isn't like other sports.
In American football, a team can go 14-2 or 2-14. The better team just always seems to win over the season by quite a bit and every time. The good teams win and the bad teams are horrid.
In Basketball, the best teams are so far above the worst teams that you can predict the winners ahead of time easily.
Baseball just doesn't go like that. The best teams only reach 60% wins; the worst, well, let's say 33%. On any given series, the same teams will have games of 14-2, 5-6, and 1-2. There is almost no sense to it.
And the sad part is that so many favorite players will be traded away as a result. And some new ones will arrive.
It drives me crazy.
Friday, September 25, 2015
Busy Day Doing Boring Stuff
Not all days can be exciting. Today was errand day...
First, I needed some supplies. And for cheap brand-name supplies, I go to Wal-Mart. And when I shop at Wal-Mart, I go at mid-morning on a weekday. So off I went at 10 am... Some visits are better than others; I barely found half the stuff I was looking for.
So I went home, dropped off the few items, had a quick lunch, fed the Mews their 2nd meal, and went grocery-shopping. I went to a store I usually don't shop at because the last time, they had the best peaches I have had in years and I was considering changing store loyalty. The last visit was a fluke! So I went to my regular store. The produce was a bit better.
That doesn't mean "great". I don't know why grocery stores put out peaches and plums etc that are hard as rocks, golden delicious apples and pineapples that are green, melons that you could pound nails with, and strawberries that are nearly white. I guess most people don't know what "ripe" is for most fruits and just put up with it. No wonder most people don't eat enough fruits; unripe fruit isn't worth eating. Fortunately, I've grown enough stuff to know the difference, so I buy was is "tolerably" ripe, enjoy the truly ripe, and ignore the rest.
Sorry, I'm really gripey because the quality seems to be getting worse. I love fresh fruits and veggies and wish I had the space, sun, and time to grow all my own. But its not like I'm ever going to grow oranges and pineapples here in Maryland!
Fortunately, the veggies are easier. Most can be eaten at any stage of growth (there is no such thing as "unripe" broccoli or mushrooms, for example). That's why I try to grow crops that DO need ripening, like tomatoes and corn.
So I did my produce shopping and then went to Nick's (meat, deli, liquor). I love that place. They custom-cut meat and have great prices, discount liquor, and a great deli counter. And they special-order my favorite inexpensive (under-appreciated) zinfandel wine. I'll give an example: They had Filet Mignon on sale at $10.69 per pound. That sounds expensive, but it is all meat. I end up with 7 small steaks at $4 each. Doesn't a Filet Mignon steak at $4 sound good to you? And large fresh-frozen shrimp (deveined) 2 lbs for $10.
Beat THAT at any restaurant... Well, it DOES help that I like to cook, and after 45 years I do it tolerably well. I'm never going to be on any TV cooking show, but I haven't complained about my cooking lately. When you start out adult life broke and doubling up on Hamburger Helper, a $4 Filet Mignon steak is pretty darn good. Surrounded by sides of homegrown tomatoes, cucumber, and mesclun lettuce salad, corn on the cob, and italian flat beans...
Tonight's dinner was actually stir-fried red and green peppers, onion, celery, potato cubes, and pork I smoked on the offset grill. And the same salad and grilled pineapple slices.
So today turned out to be the first non-yardwork day in 2 weeks. I needed the day off. The front yard grass is up and growing, the backyard grass is down and moistened for germination, and everything else can wait til tomorrow.
It was a good day!
First, I needed some supplies. And for cheap brand-name supplies, I go to Wal-Mart. And when I shop at Wal-Mart, I go at mid-morning on a weekday. So off I went at 10 am... Some visits are better than others; I barely found half the stuff I was looking for.
So I went home, dropped off the few items, had a quick lunch, fed the Mews their 2nd meal, and went grocery-shopping. I went to a store I usually don't shop at because the last time, they had the best peaches I have had in years and I was considering changing store loyalty. The last visit was a fluke! So I went to my regular store. The produce was a bit better.
That doesn't mean "great". I don't know why grocery stores put out peaches and plums etc that are hard as rocks, golden delicious apples and pineapples that are green, melons that you could pound nails with, and strawberries that are nearly white. I guess most people don't know what "ripe" is for most fruits and just put up with it. No wonder most people don't eat enough fruits; unripe fruit isn't worth eating. Fortunately, I've grown enough stuff to know the difference, so I buy was is "tolerably" ripe, enjoy the truly ripe, and ignore the rest.
Sorry, I'm really gripey because the quality seems to be getting worse. I love fresh fruits and veggies and wish I had the space, sun, and time to grow all my own. But its not like I'm ever going to grow oranges and pineapples here in Maryland!
Fortunately, the veggies are easier. Most can be eaten at any stage of growth (there is no such thing as "unripe" broccoli or mushrooms, for example). That's why I try to grow crops that DO need ripening, like tomatoes and corn.
So I did my produce shopping and then went to Nick's (meat, deli, liquor). I love that place. They custom-cut meat and have great prices, discount liquor, and a great deli counter. And they special-order my favorite inexpensive (under-appreciated) zinfandel wine. I'll give an example: They had Filet Mignon on sale at $10.69 per pound. That sounds expensive, but it is all meat. I end up with 7 small steaks at $4 each. Doesn't a Filet Mignon steak at $4 sound good to you? And large fresh-frozen shrimp (deveined) 2 lbs for $10.
Beat THAT at any restaurant... Well, it DOES help that I like to cook, and after 45 years I do it tolerably well. I'm never going to be on any TV cooking show, but I haven't complained about my cooking lately. When you start out adult life broke and doubling up on Hamburger Helper, a $4 Filet Mignon steak is pretty darn good. Surrounded by sides of homegrown tomatoes, cucumber, and mesclun lettuce salad, corn on the cob, and italian flat beans...
Tonight's dinner was actually stir-fried red and green peppers, onion, celery, potato cubes, and pork I smoked on the offset grill. And the same salad and grilled pineapple slices.
So today turned out to be the first non-yardwork day in 2 weeks. I needed the day off. The front yard grass is up and growing, the backyard grass is down and moistened for germination, and everything else can wait til tomorrow.
It was a good day!
Thursday, September 24, 2015
To Lawn Or Not To Lawn
There is progress on the newly bared areas in the front and back yards! I never intended to plant grass everywhere (and I'm not). There is something about bare soil that makes me think more of flowers and shrubs than grass.
The only thing lawn is really good for is croquet and mowing. But tradition (and community rules) require lawn, so the front yard area has been totally reseeded. I rototilled the soil, leveled it, raked it so the surface was rough, put down grass seed (Rebel brand turf-type fescue), then raked it all again carefully.
The 2nd raking was to slightly cover the grass seed (helps to hide it from hungry birds). That was Tuesday of last week. I've watered it lightly every day since, and yesterday I saw the first grass sprouts. Hurray! It seems to be coming up quite nicely.
Before...
So I turned my attention to the back yard. There won't be much new grass there! I plan one large part of it to be a home for the invasively spreading Lysimachia Firecracker (2' high with purple leaves and small yellow flowers), Coneflowers, Goldenrod, and Black-Eyed Susan. It will be surrounded by mowable grass, so it is welcome to try to spread, LOL!
The 2nd area will also be surrounded by grass but will have perennial wildflowers. The wildflower package I bought is rather vague on the types of seeds included, so I hope to be happy next year. If not, I can spread seeds of other wildflower mixes.
I laid out 200' of edging yesterday (view from the deck)...
Fortunately, there is no rush. The perennial wildflower instruction say to plant about 3 weeks before the first hard frost, and that is usually in early November. And I can't transplant the existing Lysimachia, Coneflower, Goldenrod, and Black-Eyed Susan until they go dormant about then either. The good part about waiting a while is that I can water the soil now to encourage weed seeds to germinate and then use my scuffle hoe to cut them off just below the soil.
The transplantings mean good news for the existing flowerbeds. With the transplants gone, there will be several areas free for new plants. I plan to start more annual plants inside next Spring for those areas. I went with perennials years ago for "lack of maintenance". Hah! Weeding around individual plants every year is a lot harder than just turning the whole area each year and sticking new plants in. Besides, annuals bloom all season long...
Monday, September 21, 2015
It Worked, Part 2
So here is the soil-scraper thing I made. A close-up first... The aluminum plate has 2.5" to dig in. And it is definitely sturdy.
The board isn't warped; that's a macro camera setting effect. It's a 2"x10"x4' board; heavy and straight.
Here it is upside down so you can see it. Its wider than the lawn mower.
Here it is as used. The front of the board and the aluminum plate both help drag soil around from the high spots to the low ones. I didn't plan for the board to help, I just got lucky.
Sorry I don't have a "before" picture, but imagine 6" deep furrows... Here is the "after" picture.
There are mower treads there, but there is 4" of soft soil under it. I will soak the soil with a lawn sprinkler and then transplant some existing tall perennials before scattering wildflower seeds. I have 250" of plastic edging to define the wildflower area.
Here it is upside down so you can see it. Its wider than the lawn mower.
Sunday, September 20, 2015
It Worked!
Yesterday I mentioned having a neat idea for an easier way to level the 3,500 square feet of rototilled soil in the backyard.
Well, my first idea was to use a rake, but not in the usual way. I have a 24 inch wide "leveling rake". Meaning that the non-toothed side has a strong straight metal edge.
My idea was to tie it "upside down" behind the riding lawn mower and drag it around to drag dirt into the furrows. And maybe put a cinder block on the top to dig in a bit. But even at 2' wide, that would take all day and only scrape about 1/2"! What I needed was a BIGGER RAKE. I didn't have one... But then I thought about dragging a heavy 4' wide board behind the mower. I tried that by hand and it just slid over the top of the soil.
Hmmm...
What I needed was an edge for the board at a 90 degree angle. Another board would just slide too. A sharper edge was needed. Think, think, think...
AHA! I had some 1/4" aluminum strips left over from making floors for my jon boat years ago (I keep stuff). Well one piece was 4"x4'! I drilled some holes in the aluminum plate and screwed it to the 4'x2" board. That left a 2.5" scraper lip under the board.
I tied the contraption to the back of the mower so that it would drag 3' behind the mower and prepared to try out my creation. And the mower battery was dead!
ARGGHHHHH!
I carried a boat battery out to the shed to jumpstart the mower and IT was dead. So I charged up a portable battery jumper (not this brand but same design).
And THAT wouldn't charge! I finally took the battery out of the mower, took it in the basement and attached it to a regular car battery charger. Being a small battery, it charged in an hour (enough to start the mower, anyway).
So I started dragging my home-made soil-grader around the furrowed soil.
IT WORKED!!!
In only 1 hour, I had the entire 3,500 square feet leveled. I went north-south once, east-west once, and diagonally once. Then I went around just for fun looking for high spots...
The dust was horrible though. The soil WAS 5' below ground before the ridge was removed. I was surprised at how utterly dry it was. Fortunately, there was a slight breeze and I figured out how to stay mostly upwind. Not always, of course; I did cough a lot.
Obviously, I needed several beers to wash the dust out while I stood on the deck admiring the level soil...
This was longer than I expected, so "tommorrow"...
Well, my first idea was to use a rake, but not in the usual way. I have a 24 inch wide "leveling rake". Meaning that the non-toothed side has a strong straight metal edge.
Hmmm...
What I needed was an edge for the board at a 90 degree angle. Another board would just slide too. A sharper edge was needed. Think, think, think...
AHA! I had some 1/4" aluminum strips left over from making floors for my jon boat years ago (I keep stuff). Well one piece was 4"x4'! I drilled some holes in the aluminum plate and screwed it to the 4'x2" board. That left a 2.5" scraper lip under the board.
I tied the contraption to the back of the mower so that it would drag 3' behind the mower and prepared to try out my creation. And the mower battery was dead!
ARGGHHHHH!
I carried a boat battery out to the shed to jumpstart the mower and IT was dead. So I charged up a portable battery jumper (not this brand but same design).
So I started dragging my home-made soil-grader around the furrowed soil.
IT WORKED!!!
In only 1 hour, I had the entire 3,500 square feet leveled. I went north-south once, east-west once, and diagonally once. Then I went around just for fun looking for high spots...
The dust was horrible though. The soil WAS 5' below ground before the ridge was removed. I was surprised at how utterly dry it was. Fortunately, there was a slight breeze and I figured out how to stay mostly upwind. Not always, of course; I did cough a lot.
Obviously, I needed several beers to wash the dust out while I stood on the deck admiring the level soil...
This was longer than I expected, so "tommorrow"...
Friday, September 18, 2015
The Yardwork
Summary: 5 weeks ago, I had 2 large trees removed. All the equipment tore up the front and side lawns. But I was planning excavation and lawn-raising work any a few days later, so I wasn't worried. That contractor begged off and I had to find another (who was booked for 2 weeks and would only do half the job). Before the 2nd guy could come out, the 1st one called and said they had a schedule change and were available for the whole job the next morning if I was still interested. I had them do the jobs. The work went beautifully, but of course all the equipment compacted the added soil in front, so I needed to rototill and level it. I got that done after several days work.
I know return to the story in progress...
-------------------------------------
The first priority was to plant grass seed on the raised front lawn. Because of all the rototilling, it took a LOT of raking to smooth it all. Plus I wanted loose soil to lightly cover the grass seed after spreading it around. One, it helps the grass stay in place; two, it keeps the grass seeds germinate; three, it hides the seeds from the hungry birds.
Second was to start watering the seeded lawn. You can't just set up a lawn sprinkler, the big drops of water land too hard and the heavy watering floats the grass seeds into uneven puddles. I had to water gently by hand. The first time went REAL slow. My showerhead wand puts out nice small drops but not much water at a time. And I had to walk on the seeded area to reach the farthest parts. It took 2 hours for just 2,000 square feet! And the experts recommend you water twice a day for the first week.
The next day, I used a fan sprayer. Wow, I did not realize how much more water that one sends out! And with so many small holes in the fan, it falls gently. AND reaches to the farthest spots without me standing on the seeds. I've done that twice a day since Tuesday. And as a test, I planted some grass seeds in a pot indoors to see when the grass would sprout in perfect conditions...
Third, I set my sight on the backyard where the ridge was removed. That area has better soil (well, softer at least). But it is lousy with gravel and small stones (to baseball size). First, I rototilled it. More stones and gravel... Then I tried raking them out. That was like trying a sweep a dirt road clean! After I moved 4 wheelbarrow loads of that behind the toolshed, I realized I could fill a pickup truck and not make much difference. So the surface will stay gravelly.
Fortunately, most of the backyard bare area (about 3,500 square feet - really, it's 70x50') is going to become a flower meadow. I have coneflowers, lysimachia, goldenrod, and black-eyed susans to transplant there. I have a dwarf (3') butterfly bush to take cuttings from and multiply and a dwarf rose (Knock Out) for the same multiplying. In between them, I'll spread perennial wildflowers and leave a curvy path through the middle.
But I've gotten ahead of myself. Rototilling the back area left deep furrows. And with all the gravel and stones, I didn't want to have to rake the whole area smooth by hand. So I stood on the deck staring at the furrowed soil and thought for a bit (with a beer for inspiration). And I had an interesting idea...
Tomorrow, "A Solution"...
I know return to the story in progress...
-------------------------------------
The first priority was to plant grass seed on the raised front lawn. Because of all the rototilling, it took a LOT of raking to smooth it all. Plus I wanted loose soil to lightly cover the grass seed after spreading it around. One, it helps the grass stay in place; two, it keeps the grass seeds germinate; three, it hides the seeds from the hungry birds.
Second was to start watering the seeded lawn. You can't just set up a lawn sprinkler, the big drops of water land too hard and the heavy watering floats the grass seeds into uneven puddles. I had to water gently by hand. The first time went REAL slow. My showerhead wand puts out nice small drops but not much water at a time. And I had to walk on the seeded area to reach the farthest parts. It took 2 hours for just 2,000 square feet! And the experts recommend you water twice a day for the first week.
The next day, I used a fan sprayer. Wow, I did not realize how much more water that one sends out! And with so many small holes in the fan, it falls gently. AND reaches to the farthest spots without me standing on the seeds. I've done that twice a day since Tuesday. And as a test, I planted some grass seeds in a pot indoors to see when the grass would sprout in perfect conditions...
Third, I set my sight on the backyard where the ridge was removed. That area has better soil (well, softer at least). But it is lousy with gravel and small stones (to baseball size). First, I rototilled it. More stones and gravel... Then I tried raking them out. That was like trying a sweep a dirt road clean! After I moved 4 wheelbarrow loads of that behind the toolshed, I realized I could fill a pickup truck and not make much difference. So the surface will stay gravelly.
Fortunately, most of the backyard bare area (about 3,500 square feet - really, it's 70x50') is going to become a flower meadow. I have coneflowers, lysimachia, goldenrod, and black-eyed susans to transplant there. I have a dwarf (3') butterfly bush to take cuttings from and multiply and a dwarf rose (Knock Out) for the same multiplying. In between them, I'll spread perennial wildflowers and leave a curvy path through the middle.
But I've gotten ahead of myself. Rototilling the back area left deep furrows. And with all the gravel and stones, I didn't want to have to rake the whole area smooth by hand. So I stood on the deck staring at the furrowed soil and thought for a bit (with a beer for inspiration). And I had an interesting idea...
Tomorrow, "A Solution"...
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
5 Years Gone
Mom died 5 years ago today from common old age problems. I miss her as a friend. She "mothered" me for 18 years, and she became more of a friend after that. Does that seem strange?
For almost my entire adult life (18-55), we corresponded almost weekly. She and I are writers, and letters were our "talk". We both loved words, their origins, and their changing meanings. It runs in her side of the family; one of her sisters worked on a major dictionary. If there was a pun to be made, we made it. If there was some older meaning of a word, we played it.
It ended 5 years before she died. She could no longer write even with the help of a machine. I suppose it didn't matter, her mind was going wrong along with her fingers. The last 5 years, she couldn't communicate. I kept writing letters that Dad read to her until he said she couldn't understand anything anymore.
I miss her as my Mom. But I miss her as my friend more. I don't want that to sound wrong. Its just that we had a special similar sense of humor-wordplay, and top-this-doggeral poem that lasted for so many years..
I got my sense of the dramatic from her. When she was middle-aged, the social group she was in had theme parties. One was Wild Hats. Mom had Dad take a straw hat and add a big plywood ring around it. She took our Ben-Hur chariot set and glued them around the ring. First Prize! I learned from that.
Thanks for everything, Mom... I carry on the tradition.
For almost my entire adult life (18-55), we corresponded almost weekly. She and I are writers, and letters were our "talk". We both loved words, their origins, and their changing meanings. It runs in her side of the family; one of her sisters worked on a major dictionary. If there was a pun to be made, we made it. If there was some older meaning of a word, we played it.
It ended 5 years before she died. She could no longer write even with the help of a machine. I suppose it didn't matter, her mind was going wrong along with her fingers. The last 5 years, she couldn't communicate. I kept writing letters that Dad read to her until he said she couldn't understand anything anymore.
I miss her as my Mom. But I miss her as my friend more. I don't want that to sound wrong. Its just that we had a special similar sense of humor-wordplay, and top-this-doggeral poem that lasted for so many years..
I got my sense of the dramatic from her. When she was middle-aged, the social group she was in had theme parties. One was Wild Hats. Mom had Dad take a straw hat and add a big plywood ring around it. She took our Ben-Hur chariot set and glued them around the ring. First Prize! I learned from that.
Thanks for everything, Mom... I carry on the tradition.
Saturday, September 12, 2015
Good and Bad Day
Discovered I could transact business with my far away credit union through a different local one. They call it Credit-Union-Sharing (real original, right?). But it beats driving an hour and back.
Picked 22 ripe cherry tomatoes and 3 large heirloom tomatoes in the garden. YUM!
Raked 10 piles of rocks out of the new leveled backyard. Not sure what I will DO with the rocks yet. But they have to go before I can plant anything there. And I have a cool tool for raking rocks. Get ready for the name - Rock Raker! Maybe "Stoned Today, Gone Tomorrow"?
Actually, it works. The front tines are curved slightly backwards, so it catches rocks and lets soil slide through. I suspect some clam-digger adapted it to New England farming.
Fired up the charcoal offset smoker. Cooked pork ribs and chicken. The ribs are delicious; I'll have some chicken tomorrow. And I have enough leftovers for 10 more meals. Those hickory chunks make great smoke and flavor.
Watered the flowerbeds. We aren't technically in a drought, but the recently-removed ridge soil was dry as dust 4' down and that's not good. We we forecast "heavy rain" Thursday/Friday, but I got less than 1/4". That doesn't even register on plants. In fact, it's bad for them. It encourages the roots upwards, where they dry out faster.
So I try to water deeply once a week. We aren't low on water supply here (for the hoses), just not much rain and lots of plants transpiring it from the soil even deep down. Its the lack of water deep in the soil that worries me.
Watering is easy. I have this thing I built...
I bought 2 plants that I want more of. One is a Knock-Off Rose and the other is a dwarf butterfly bush. I hate buying plants that cost $25 in a 3" pot! But I know how to take cuttings and root them. So each of those plants will be 5 plants at least next Spring.
Call me cheap, but its the fun of doing the rootings I like...
And the cats are loving being outside. Marley misses his mousies (destroyed when the ridge was leveled) but he accepts my promise that the new plantings will probably bring even more mousies around and he will have more hiding places.
I better deliver on that promise...
Picked 22 ripe cherry tomatoes and 3 large heirloom tomatoes in the garden. YUM!
Raked 10 piles of rocks out of the new leveled backyard. Not sure what I will DO with the rocks yet. But they have to go before I can plant anything there. And I have a cool tool for raking rocks. Get ready for the name - Rock Raker! Maybe "Stoned Today, Gone Tomorrow"?
Actually, it works. The front tines are curved slightly backwards, so it catches rocks and lets soil slide through. I suspect some clam-digger adapted it to New England farming.
Fired up the charcoal offset smoker. Cooked pork ribs and chicken. The ribs are delicious; I'll have some chicken tomorrow. And I have enough leftovers for 10 more meals. Those hickory chunks make great smoke and flavor.
Watered the flowerbeds. We aren't technically in a drought, but the recently-removed ridge soil was dry as dust 4' down and that's not good. We we forecast "heavy rain" Thursday/Friday, but I got less than 1/4". That doesn't even register on plants. In fact, it's bad for them. It encourages the roots upwards, where they dry out faster.
So I try to water deeply once a week. We aren't low on water supply here (for the hoses), just not much rain and lots of plants transpiring it from the soil even deep down. Its the lack of water deep in the soil that worries me.
Watering is easy. I have this thing I built...
Call me cheap, but its the fun of doing the rootings I like...
And the cats are loving being outside. Marley misses his mousies (destroyed when the ridge was leveled) but he accepts my promise that the new plantings will probably bring even more mousies around and he will have more hiding places.
I better deliver on that promise...
Friday, September 11, 2015
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
Annoying Neighbors
My neighbors had a Labor Day party. Good for them, that's fine. They weren't loud or anything. But we don't have curbs on the streets here. So parking off-street means parking on lawns. In this case, mine.
I looked out the front windows in the afternoon to see 3 cars parked on my front lawn. That would normally annoy me a bit, but I had just rototilled that area to un-compact the soil so I could plant grass. Argh!
Yeah, yeah, they have to park "somewhere", but I noticed that they DIDNT park on the host's lawn... THAT'S what annoyed me. It's like that was intructions from the host neighbor "park on the neighbor's lawn, not mine"...
I let it go... I don't like to start fights about small things. I can run the rototiller over the crushed soil again. Small things can start bigger arguments.
But the next day, I discovered that the guests backing their cars out from the line of other cars, backed a dozen feet onto my loose soil. Tire tracks don't lie.
Mumble, grumble, mumble, vague swear word, mumble, grumble...
I hope they don't have another party soon. Otherwise, I think I may charge for parking. ;)
I looked out the front windows in the afternoon to see 3 cars parked on my front lawn. That would normally annoy me a bit, but I had just rototilled that area to un-compact the soil so I could plant grass. Argh!
Yeah, yeah, they have to park "somewhere", but I noticed that they DIDNT park on the host's lawn... THAT'S what annoyed me. It's like that was intructions from the host neighbor "park on the neighbor's lawn, not mine"...
I let it go... I don't like to start fights about small things. I can run the rototiller over the crushed soil again. Small things can start bigger arguments.
But the next day, I discovered that the guests backing their cars out from the line of other cars, backed a dozen feet onto my loose soil. Tire tracks don't lie.
Mumble, grumble, mumble, vague swear word, mumble, grumble...
I hope they don't have another party soon. Otherwise, I think I may charge for parking. ;)
Monday, September 7, 2015
Rototillering the Back Yard
Well, the back yard was sure a change from the front! The front was delivered "topsoil", the backyard was existing soil from the ridge. What a difference in quality, and not the way you would think!!! The ridge in the backyard was better soil...
When I finished the first 2" tilling of the front packed soil, I was worried about the backyard because they drove the equipment around there a lot more than in the front. But when I finished the 2" tilling of the new front soil, I did one experimental row through the back.
The back soil is WONDERFUL! In spite of all the equipment driven over it, it is (relatively) soft, loose, and fertile-looking. The surface seemed also hard, but the rototiller just went through it like a spoon through flour... That part is going to be so easy that I feel better about having to spend time on the front.
Hurray for an easy part to the project!
Planting in the backyard is going to be easy.
The important part is deciding what to plant. The front yard is easy - lawn (keeps the neighbors happy). The backyard is more important to me and the cats. We live THERE when outside. And we like bugs and butterflies and birds and bees.
So, I want a small meadow of native flowers that will support locals bugs and etc. I think there will be an edging of 3' shrubs (some to each flower in Spring, Summer, and Fall) and 2 pieces of 225 square feet (21 square meters) meadow (separated by a mowable path). I have some suitable plants I can divide and plant in clumps (coneflowers, black-eye-susans, goldenrod, and I will buy a large packet of native meadowflower seeds to scatter among them in 1 patch .
The other patch will be the Lysimachia Firecracker that has been bedeviling me in the regular flowerbed. In a patch I can finally mow around, it won't spread easily. I love the purple leaves and the yellow flowers, it just isn't a friendly neighbor to other plants. So it gets it's own spot where it can be controlled.
For the Spring Summer, and Fall blooming shrubs, I am choosing Azaleas for Spring, a Rhododendron for Fall, and I'm not sure about a small Summer-blooming shrub, but considering Knock-out Rose and or a dwarf butterfly bush. Suggestions for USA Zone 7 are welcome.
When I measure the new area for a scaled layout, I'll post it.
----------------------
I do have to add a minor accident. I was guiding the rototiller along the edge of the drainage easement in the front yard yesterday and I hit a rock. The rototiller tilted, and of course it tilted in the direction of the drainage easement. You know how somethings tilt and, just for one brief movement all is seemingly balanced? And then it falls...
In the wrong direction, of course.
Before I go further, I should mention that it seems to me that everyone has some particular problem that happens to them more often than to others. One of mine is that gas equipment doesn't like to stop when set to the "stop" position. They just sputter and cough along refusing to actually stop. My regular lawn mower does that and I have to use a screwdriver to short-circuit the spark plug to the chassis to stop it. My gas chain saw does that (when I can get it to start at all). The rototiller has the same problem.
So there it was, balanced on the digging parts trying to fall into the drainage easement. It succeeded! My first thought was DAMN! My second was "I hope nobody saw that"! But I set the lever to the stop position and it wouldn't stop. Of course...
At least the lever that disengages the digging blades (tines) worked. So there I was with the rototiller on its side in the drainage easement, sputtering. And besides, in trying to hold the thing up out of the drainage easement, I fell into it myself.
Need I mention that there are brambles along the edge of the drainage easement at that ONE spot? Probably not, what else would be there with my luck? So I picked myself up out of the muddy bottom, pulled the rototiller upright, and got it into reverse and backed it up the side of the drainage easement side.
It's OK to laugh. I wouldn't be telling you about this if I was easily embarrassed by the occasional failures in daily life. After I had the rototiller back out of the drainage easement (and turned off), I sat down and laughed too.
If you can't laugh at yourself, you have a problem... LOL!
When I finished the first 2" tilling of the front packed soil, I was worried about the backyard because they drove the equipment around there a lot more than in the front. But when I finished the 2" tilling of the new front soil, I did one experimental row through the back.
The back soil is WONDERFUL! In spite of all the equipment driven over it, it is (relatively) soft, loose, and fertile-looking. The surface seemed also hard, but the rototiller just went through it like a spoon through flour... That part is going to be so easy that I feel better about having to spend time on the front.
Hurray for an easy part to the project!
Planting in the backyard is going to be easy.
The important part is deciding what to plant. The front yard is easy - lawn (keeps the neighbors happy). The backyard is more important to me and the cats. We live THERE when outside. And we like bugs and butterflies and birds and bees.
So, I want a small meadow of native flowers that will support locals bugs and etc. I think there will be an edging of 3' shrubs (some to each flower in Spring, Summer, and Fall) and 2 pieces of 225 square feet (21 square meters) meadow (separated by a mowable path). I have some suitable plants I can divide and plant in clumps (coneflowers, black-eye-susans, goldenrod, and I will buy a large packet of native meadowflower seeds to scatter among them in 1 patch .
The other patch will be the Lysimachia Firecracker that has been bedeviling me in the regular flowerbed. In a patch I can finally mow around, it won't spread easily. I love the purple leaves and the yellow flowers, it just isn't a friendly neighbor to other plants. So it gets it's own spot where it can be controlled.
For the Spring Summer, and Fall blooming shrubs, I am choosing Azaleas for Spring, a Rhododendron for Fall, and I'm not sure about a small Summer-blooming shrub, but considering Knock-out Rose and or a dwarf butterfly bush. Suggestions for USA Zone 7 are welcome.
When I measure the new area for a scaled layout, I'll post it.
----------------------
I do have to add a minor accident. I was guiding the rototiller along the edge of the drainage easement in the front yard yesterday and I hit a rock. The rototiller tilted, and of course it tilted in the direction of the drainage easement. You know how somethings tilt and, just for one brief movement all is seemingly balanced? And then it falls...
In the wrong direction, of course.
Before I go further, I should mention that it seems to me that everyone has some particular problem that happens to them more often than to others. One of mine is that gas equipment doesn't like to stop when set to the "stop" position. They just sputter and cough along refusing to actually stop. My regular lawn mower does that and I have to use a screwdriver to short-circuit the spark plug to the chassis to stop it. My gas chain saw does that (when I can get it to start at all). The rototiller has the same problem.
So there it was, balanced on the digging parts trying to fall into the drainage easement. It succeeded! My first thought was DAMN! My second was "I hope nobody saw that"! But I set the lever to the stop position and it wouldn't stop. Of course...
At least the lever that disengages the digging blades (tines) worked. So there I was with the rototiller on its side in the drainage easement, sputtering. And besides, in trying to hold the thing up out of the drainage easement, I fell into it myself.
Need I mention that there are brambles along the edge of the drainage easement at that ONE spot? Probably not, what else would be there with my luck? So I picked myself up out of the muddy bottom, pulled the rototiller upright, and got it into reverse and backed it up the side of the drainage easement side.
It's OK to laugh. I wouldn't be telling you about this if I was easily embarrassed by the occasional failures in daily life. After I had the rototiller back out of the drainage easement (and turned off), I sat down and laughed too.
If you can't laugh at yourself, you have a problem... LOL!
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I think I have it figured out now. I needed basic frame strength (cubes) plus top support (arches with a ridgepole) for shedding rain and s... -
I like to plant Pansies in the Fall. I replace the dead Tomatos and deck pot flowers with them most years. Best deal I found was 12-packs ...